A Twisted Fate
by Risemonger
Summary: It is varied on what makes up a backbone of a society. It can be from religion to science, from war to peace. For the Sangheili, spilling blood was the structure of their lives. Before the events of the Great War, we follow the humbled background of a Sangheili girl who's life soon became twisted. Rated M for future chapters.
1. Prologue

It is varied on what makes up a backbone of a society. It can be from religion to science, and from war to peace. For the Sangheili, spilling blood was the structure of their lives.

Long before the formation of the Covenant, the Sangheili were always divided. An entire race that thrived on war. They were not wars of Gods or skin colour. They were simply a way to determine the strongest. Those who survived lived on, to wage further war. Bringing glory to their clans and themselves, earning greatly sought after respect and the right to add to their species. Those who lost, were crushed under their heels, their clans shamed. The Sangheili way of life was always to separate the strong from the weak.

During their ancient days, the Sangheili formed tightly knit clans, who wondered the harsh plains, deserts, forests and even the seas of Sanghelios. Their goals were simple: survive and conquer. When two clans wondered too close to one another, a battle broke out. When the warriors of one clan is defeated, the winning clan claimed their possessions and the surviving people.

The pattern keeps repeating until a clan becomes too large to continue travelling. And so, the Sangheili would finally settle in one area of land, building a permanent refuge. More often than not, the settlers would find themselves in areas where Forerunner artefacts dominated the land. However in their primitive stage, the Sangheili thought nothing of the significance behind the structures. They simply believed that they represented their superiority. It wasn't until one single warrior- the greatest of them all- arose above the senseless bloodshed and through many trials, he finally brought his race to the light, showing them a new way of life. He was then declared as the Dervish King of Sanghelios: the Arbiter.

As the clans expanded, they built themselves a village, the clan leader declares him or herself as a Kaidon, earning a family name to rule over their citizens for generations. And thus under the rule of the Arbiter, the Family States were born.

In spite of the era of peace, the base instincts of the Sangheili could not be ignored forever and once again, they fought each other. Many times has a family state been overrun by another. When this happens, the victorious state takes over the land, forcing the current citizens to bow to their rule and family name. This cycle of war continued for thousands of generations, only the weapons changed as the Sangheili evolved. Those that settled in Forerunner sites created superior weapons, such as the plasma sword as it is known today.

Until the appearance of the San'Shyuum.

The Sangheili at the time worshipped the Spirit of Sanghelios; an ancient entity that governs the souls of their ancestors and the balance of life. So when the San'Shyuum declared that the Forerunners were the true Gods, the Sangheili retaliated. Violently.

Once again, the Sangheili went to war. This time, however, their weapons were not pointed at themselves, their purpose for fighting not to separate the weak. They fought the aliens that dared to call their way of life blasphemous. Outraged that the San'Shyuum would attempt to rewrite their history, the Sangheili fought.

But the war did not last long. The San'Shyuum, seeing their inevitable defeat to this race of hardened warriors, took a different turn to show the Sangheili the Forerunners might.

The whole of Sanghelios became a war zone, as the San'Shyuum displayed the strength of the Forerunners machines. Fire fell from the sky, destroying many cities and thousands of lives were extinguished. Though the Sangheili continued to fight, they knew they couldn't stand up to the San'Shyuum. The aliens were physically weaker than them, but their technology, created from the same ancient structures upon their world, were indeed far more superior. With their Arbiter's defeat, they knew that if the war didn't end, their race would become extinguished. And thus, the leaders of their race surrendered to the San'Shyuum, ending the war.

The San'Shyuum commended the Sangheili for their bravery, for their will to fight. So, within the largest city on Sanghelios, the two races formed a peace treaty. The Sangheili leaders abandoned their ancient traditions and embraced the Forerunners. Thus, forming the Writ of Union and creating the Covenant.

However, despite this reign of peace, many Sangheili clans were furious with their leaders throwing aside their way of life. So, they turned their backs on their people, never integrating with the modern lifestyle the Sangheili now had. They reverted back to the ancient ways, to live as their ancestors once did. Wondering the land and embracing the plains, deserts and forests. The only difference was that instead of fighting each other, the clans were united to drive the 'City-Borns' from their lands. To never trust those who abandoned the Spirit of Sanghelios.

They became the Eternal Wanderers.

Since their formation, the Wanderers kept their promise to stay far from the cities and family states. Striving only to preserve the ancient ways, with the hope that their people's eyes will open and abandon the false Gods to embrace their true one once again.

The line separating the cities and the Wanderers was kept intact for centuries, only small handfuls of city-born Sangheili abandoned the Forerunners every so often, and searched for the Wanderers to begin anew. But the line was completely broken in the 4299th cycle, in the closing days of the 42nd Era.

During this time, a Wanderer woman named Ke'atuól'ti stumbled across two Special Operations warriors of the Covenant Navy searching in the plains that spanned the edge of the unidentified desert on the boarders of Iruiru. A tense stand off ensued where she demanded to know why they were there. Multiple times did the city-borns try to find their camps and destroy them. She knew that if they meant harm to her people, she would die to keep them safe.

It surprised her however, when she learnt that they were instead assisting the home guards to find slavers. Her people had been captured by those alien blasphemers for cycles and while she didn't trust the two warriors, she was willing to assist them.

Within those next few months, Ke'atuól'ti helped them find the slavers and when they were found, she spoke to her mother, the leader at the camp. She, in turn, spoke to the Commander of the home guard and they assisted them to destroy the slavers at their heart. When it was done, the Elder Council recognised the role the Wanderers played in taking down the slave ring, which turned out to be larger than anticipated. The Council rewarded them, allowing them to permanently settle in the plains and promising them protection should they need it.

It was during the time that Ke'atuól'ti worked with the two Special Ops. warriors, that she found kinship with one of them. Once her people were returned, she and the warrior exchanged words before he had to leave the planet and return to the Covenant. She wanted their final moment together to be memorable, and so she gave herself to him.

She was sad to see him leave, her memory of that night the only thing she had of him. Yet she soon discovered that he left her something else. He had left her with child.

When the child finally hatched, it was obvious that she wasn't of full Wonderer birth. While she had her mother's beauty, she also shared her father's characteristics. But her different appearance did nothing to sway her people from loving her as their own, and thus she was raised into their fold. That is where her story begins.


	2. Humble Beginnings

**17th of the 1st season, 43rd Era, 4308th cycle  
Sangheili Calender  
Eighth Age of Reclamation  
Covenant Calender  
October 3rd 2497  
UNSC Military Calender _  
_**

Spring had reached the Iruiru reigion of the continent of Yermo, in the western tombolo cluster of Sanghelios. Two of the three suns of the star system hung in the yellowy sky, turning it a copper colour as they sank to the horizon to conclude the day. The red sands of the great desert blew through the air in swirling patterns, as the dying heat of the suns beamed down on the land.

Upon the edges of the desert, of which gave way to a dusty tundra, a murder of small leather-winged creatures- known to the inhabitants of this reigion as 'sKelln- flew in perfect formation overhead. Their twin set of bat-like wings cut through the air with ease, their metallic screeches echoing through the area, joining with the song of the haunting winds.

The noise of their passing disturbed a herd of wild keifra, causing the horned herbivores to dart off as one. Their large bodies dashed across the plains in a matter of moments, their hooves kicking up dirt and dust. Unexpectently, their abrupt departure was followed by a loud and childish yell. Half a second later, a Sangheili child suddenly burst out of the tall grasses nearby, a small dagger clenched in hand and gave chase.

The child was a young female, appearing to be only seven cycles old. She was quite tall and toned for her age, with dark grey skin that glowed with youth. Her large emerald green eyes were fixed on the keifra herd with fiery determination. Her clothing was quite unusual for the normal Sangheili, as she wore a combination of light animal skins, consisting of a loose shirt which reached down to her upper legs with two leather belts tied around her waist, her arms left bare. The belts were decorated with feathers, a small pouch at her right hip and a small sheath for her dagger on her left. Her leggings were tight around her legs, reaching all the way to her hooves. Another distinctive feature about her was that the primary thumb on her right hand was abnormally short, no scar was present around the tip, signifying that she was born with the abnormality.

The young girl darted expertly across the rocky terrian, taking loud shallow pants as she struggled to keep pace with the creatures, small mandibles vibrating against her jaw as she pushed her body past its limits. Her muscles had begun to burn when she spotted a single animal break off from the herd. It was smaller than the rest, signifying that it was most likely still an infant. But small or not, the girl wasn't going to waste this chance.

Forcing her legs to go faster, the child quickly gained on the small keifra. Once she was close enough, she bound over a fallen dried out tree as the animal darted under, using it to propel herself forward and diving upon it's back. She immediately grabbed it round the throat with her right hand, using her weight to bring it down to the ground.

Sure enough, with the added weight put on the small animal, it's legs buckled from under it causing it to skid into the ground. The momentum forced the child to pounce off it, rolling upon the tundra floor ahead of the animal as it fell, preventing any injury to herself. A quiet snapping sounded out as the keifra skidded to a halt- the force of the fall had broken it's legs. The child gazed back on her bounty, a sad look suddenly crossing her face as it whined. Sure, it wouldn't be going anywhere, but the poor thing was suffering now.

She walked back to it, listening to the pained whimpers of the creature. Gripping her dagger more securely, she knelt, leaning her knee on it's long neck which forced it to keep still. As she stroked it's head, she became aware that there was someone coming toward her. Looking up, she spotted an adult Sangheili male kneeling down a foot from her, watching her.

He had dark brown, almost black skin with well defined muscles. Chocolate coloured eyes stared at her and the whimpering animal, regarding both of them with a calculated look. He wore a light leather shirt that reached to his waist, held together by a leather belt with a number of small pouches lining the back and sides, and a single dagger sheathed on his left with what resembled a tomahawk on his right. As with the young girl, his leather leggings were tight on his legs with thick leather boots tied tight around his lower legs. A quiver of arrows sat at his back with a wooden long bow, which was wrapped over his shoulder by the pull-string to keep it in place.

He nodded at her as he rested his arms on his knees. At his acknowledgement, the girl returned her attention to the dying animal below her. She held the head down more securely, taking a deep shuddering breath before she began to speak.

" **/** Spirit of Sanghelios. **\** " she chanted in her native language, positioning her dagger over where the keifra's twin hearts connected, mentally preparing herself for what she was about to do. " **/** Hear my words and embrace this soul into your fold. **\** " after a moment of hesitance, she closed her eyes as she thrust the dagger through the tough hide, ceasing the whimpers which caused her breath to catch in her throat. " **/** The essence departs, the vessel left behind, to become one with the people. **\** "

Withdrawing the dagger, she sheathed it, turning to the adult as he addressed her.

" **/** Well done, Kanan'tú'lia. **\** " he praised. " **/** You make a habit of surprising me, youngling. I truly did not believe you could achieve your first kill so quickly. **\** "

Rising from the now dead creature, the girl, known as Kanan'tú'lia, smiled at the man and gave him a slight nod. " **/** Thank you master. **\** " she replied.

As she stepped away from the carcass, her tutor stood to move toward it. Bending down, he gripped it's front legs and threw them over his shoulders while gripping the back legs in turn. Once it was comfortably over his shoulders, he stood, inclining his head to his apprentice. " **/** Come. Let us return to the village. I am certain your mother will be pleased with your progress. **\** "

Giving the older Sangheili a smile, Kanan'tú'lia jogged ahead of him as they both made their way across the tundra and back to their village.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

True to her tutor's word, her mother was indeed pleased when they returned. While the keifra was too small to share between the entire village, it still showed Kanan'tú'lia's potential as a great hunter. It was quite the feat, considering how old Kanan'tú'lia is.

'Her determination is a force to be reckoned with', her tutor had said when they returned.

Her mother, second leader to Kanan'tú'lia's grandmother, had still rewarded her with the privilege of skinning the body herself and sharing the meat with the other children.

Now kneeling under a makeshift awning, hands slick with the blood of the carcass, Kanan'tú'lia obliged to her task. Despite her hesitance at killing the animal, she found that- while it was quite daunting to begin with- it was fairly easy to skin the body herself. She had finished removing the leathery pelt before the final sun sank behind the cliff-side and was now busying herself with removing the flesh when soft footfalls distracted her from her work.

Turning around, she noticed her closest friend Tahsé'ton. He spread his chubby mandibles in a cheery smile as he knelt beside her. As with the others in the tribe, Tahsé'ton had dark brown skin, but his were slightly dimpled with a splash of freckles dotted along his cheekbones, his mahogany eyes brightened when he smiled. He had a more stocky build than Kanan'tú'lia and was a little older than her as well, though he still wore similar clothing to her as well.

" **/** Hello Tahsé'ton. **\** " Kanan'tú'lia said brightly as she set down the piece of meat she had just cut onto a thick wooden board.

" **/** I heard about what you did today, Kanan'tú'lia. **\** " he cheerily exclaimed. "/The others didn't think you could do it, but I knew you would.\"

Kanan'tú'lia laughed at her friend's enthusiasm. "/It did make me tired though. Keifra are very fast.\"

"/But you did it, you actually got your first kill. **\** " Tahsé'ton lowered his head then, looking quite downtrodden. "/I wish I could make my kill. **\** "

Slapping down another piece of meat, Kanan'tú'lia stared at her friend sympathetically. Reaching her hand out to touch his shoulder, Kanan'tú'lia paused when she noticed they were still slick with blood. Wincing, she lowered her hand and smiled at him instead. "/Don't worry Tahsé'ton. You'll get it.\" she replied reassuringly.

"/What if I don't?\"

Kanan'tú'lia frowned, thinking for a moment. After a second, her mandibles twisted into a smile. "/I think Nin'rehá could use an apprentice.\"

Tahsé'ton scowled at her as she laughed. "/That's not funny Kanan'tú'lia! I don't want to be a herbalist. **\** "

Chuckling still, Kanan'tú'lia grinned at her friend. "/I was only joking Tahsé'ton, don't be so serious all the time. **\** "

Silence fell between the two children after that. Kanan'tú'lia continuing with her task while Tahsé'ton watched her. Occasionally, he would reach out to assist her but mostly kept to himself. It was only when Kanan'tú'lia had finished with removing the flesh that he spoke again.

"/So,\" he began, turning Kanan'tú'lia's attention away from wrapping the remains in a terry cloth. "/The older children were telling stories to us while you were gone.\"

"/What stories?\" she asked, curious.

"/They were telling us about the city-borns.\" he replied enthusiastically. That caught Kanan'tú'lia's attention as Tahsé'ton continued. " **/** Sí'halei said that they shoot fire from their hands. And that they tame giant metal avians.\"

Kanan'tú'lia snorted. "/That's just silly.\" she commented, returning to the task of wrapping the meat and carcass remains in separate bags. "/He was just playing you. No one can shoot fire from their hands or tame metal avians. I don't even think there's such thing as metal avians. You are so gullible Tahsé'ton.\"

"/Am not.\" the boy argued.

"/Are too, if you believe everything Sí'halei says.\" she sang mockingly. She laughed when her friend pouted, crossing his arms childishly. Standing from her knelt position, Kanan'tú'lia hefted up the bag of meat, slinging it over her shoulder. She inclined her head to Tahsé'ton. "/Come on then. Let's take the meat to the others, I'm sure they'll like it.\"

Nodding in agreement, Tahsé'ton scrambled up from the floor, beginning to follow the girl toward the centre of the village.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

The morning sky had a red sheen stretching across the dark horizon, as the first sun began its ascent. It was at this time that Kanan'tú'lia rose from her slumber. It was a regular occurrance for the young Sangheili to wake early, as it was the only time when she could leave the village to explore -without any of the grown-ups stopping her.

Slowly rolling from her bed -which consisted only of a large wooden board lined with soft doarmir fur pelts- Kanan'tú'lia crawled stealthily to where she left her clothes the previous night. She kept her eyes fixed on the still figures of her mother and grandmother as she moved, seeing that both of them were still fast asleep. She had no fear of waking her grandmother, since the elderly woman was in her latter cycles and thus, she had been slowly weakening as time went on- which had both her and her mother worried. The young girl's true concern at the moment was her mother though, as she was far too perceptive and any wrong movement would awaken her, so the young Sangheili forced herself to stay slow and quiet as she pulled off the loose sleeping shirt and began putting on her clothing.

She grimaced at her tunic however. When she skinned the keifra's corpse the other night, a bit of it's blood had found its way on her tunic. Tiny droplets of indigo dotted along the collar and small faded smears stretched along the rim. Most likely where she accidentally brushed her hands on herself as she worked. But she shrugged, paying no further heed to the droplets and finished dressing. There weren't many predators she had true concern for around the plains anyway, and as long as she kept away from the desert she had no fear of being tracked down. Upon finishing, she quietly jumped up onto her feet, tip-toeing her way over her mother's legs. Her feet barely made a sound as they grazed across the floor.

Successfully navigating her way around her still sleeping relatives, Kanan'tú'lia side-stepped toward the opposite side of the hut, keeping a sharp emerald eye on them in case they made any movements. Her back to the exit, she studied the two older Sangheili for the final time before turning and slowly opening the door. Slipping out, Kanan'tú'lia grinned as she closed it.

Turning away from her home, she hastened her pace, reaching the edge of the walled off village in record time. Reaching the single exit of the makeshift community, Kanan'tú'lia glanced once more back toward the village, checking to see if anyone was around and happened to see her. Confident that she had sneaked away successfully, she darted through the exit and toward the towering face of the cliff the village was sheltered by. Quickly finding the pass through the cliff-side, she ran through.

As she ran deeper into the cave, the wind blowing mournfully through the entrance, Kanan'tú'lia navigated around the running river that was housed within. Paying no attention to the small waterfall crashing into the rust-coloured pool below, she made her way quickly to the other side. Finding the only exit on this side of the pass, which had been carefully hidden by the foliage, she swiped aside the hanging vines and stepped into the untamed tundra.

Kanan'tú'lia had only been outside in the tundra on her own a few times, as she only gained the confidence to do so the previous season. Since she's still young, she and the other children had been forbidden to leave the valley they call home unsupervised until they can prove they are skilled and mature enough to hunt on their own.

Despite the fact she had made her first kill, Kanan'tú'lia's mother, Ke'atuól'ti, had decided that her daughter was still too young to venture out alone. That never stopped her though. Kanan'tú'lia had explored the valley that guarded her village so many times, that she had memorised every landscape. While it was beautiful, navigating around that area had become boring and repetitive and as such, it no longer satisfied the young adventurous girl. So against her mother's wishes, Kanan'tú'lia began to secretively explore outside the safety of the cliffs.

Sucking in a long breath and letting it out her mouth, Kanan'tú'lia darted off across the landscape, locating an outcropping of rocks up ahead. Using this as her starting point, she began climbing the mound to gain a birdseye view of the area.

Upon reaching a high enough point, she turned to the view beyond. From up here, she could see for miles across the dusty plains. From the forests to the north, which gave way for the city and the Kolaar mountains further beyond, to the vast desert to the south. She had decided long ago to keep away from the desert though, as that was unfamiliar territory and had been warned numerous times by the hunters to never cross into its bounderies. As skilled as she may be, she would still make an easy target for the predators that roamed the area, especially if she's alone. Therefore, decision made, she turned her gaze northbound, following the winding river until she spotted an interesting looking oasis that looked close enough for her to run to. Smiling, she leapt carefully off the rocks and began her journey across the tundra toward the oasis.

It didn't take long for the cliff-side that hid her village to shrink into the distance behind her. For one so young, Kanan'tú'lia was quite a fast and athletic girl. Often times, she was the envy of the older children for her agility. It was quite amazing truthfully, the fact that she could cover tremendous distances on both the ground and in the trees stunned even her tutors. Still, she did only have four cycles worth of experience and many more to go before she could perform flawlessly, as was made evident as she almost slipped and tumbled off some rocks during her trek.

Before long, she finally reached the edge of the oasis. The trees that dotted the area would give her the perfect vantage point to survey the area, which would allow her to plot her next course for the next time she come out to explore. She had been running across the plains for a good while now, as the first sun had almost fully risen over the horizon, so she decided to get a good look around now so she had an idea on where to go next time.

As she was looking around though, that was when Kanan'tú'lia's ears picked up an odd noise. One that didn't correspond to the natural sounds of the plains. She strained her hearing, trying to pinpoint where the noise came from. As she listened, she picked up the sound of the wind whistling through the leaves, nearby creatures speaking to one-another and voices echoing through the hills. The voices was what caught her attention.

Oh no. Had her mother discovered what she was doing and sent some of the hunters to search for her? It seemed plausible, except that the voices were not speaking in her tongue. They were speaking in a language that she didn't understand. Frowning in confusion, Kanan'tú'lia lowered herself down the tree, allowing her body to pass through the pale green leaves as she slid down to the ground below. After that, she dashed off in the direction of the voices.

It didn't take her long to find the source of the anomaly. Hearing that the voices were much louder now, Kanan'tú'lia flattened herself on the ground of a rocky ridge, crawling on her stomach so she could peek over the edge. Right there below her was a fairly decent sized camp, occupied by a large number of Sangheili, mainly younglings, all of which were yelling fairly loudly.

Gasping in surprise, Kanan'tú'lia knew immediately that she had stumbled across some city-borns. It wasn't too shocking for her however, since she knew city-borns tended to come to the plains often, all in an effort to further their strange methods of training. Kanan'tú'lia found that they tended to used foreign methods, once she heard of how the city-borns trained. Plus, there only ever seemed to be young males that were being trained, such as there were now, which she had always found weird. She always had wondered why the city-borns did not train their females, since she found that to be such a waste of potential hunters for them.

Shaking off her thoughts, Kanan'tú'lia continued to watch the company. She noticed that in fact, there seemed to only be a small number of adults amongst the youngsters, all of which were garbed in their strange metal suits. The boys were all wearing similar coloured jumpsuits with simple designs and patterns upon them. As of right now, the majority of the young boys were gathered in an open circle, creating something like an arena where two more boys were engaged in hand to hand combat.

When Kanan'tú'lia focused her attention on them, she winced in sympathy when one of the boys was hit across his face by the other before he was tackled, sending them both tumbling on the sandy ground. Just as the boy on top was about to deliver a flurry of punches, that was when one of the adults pushed his way through the crowd and grip the boy's arm firmly. The man then spoke to the younger in a harsh and commanding tone, to which he immediately got off the boy on the floor. Unfortunately, Kanan'tú'lia didn't understand a single word of the city language, therefore she didn't know what they were saying to each other but judging from their tones, it seemed to her that these boys were under the tutelage of these adults.

The young boy that had been tackled pulled himself off the ground, grumbling the enter time. He soon forced himself through the crowd of boys around them, the adults yelling at the youngsters shortly after, no doubt commanding them to disperse. The group scattered then, each boy going about their own business or grouped together, but still kept within eyeshot of one another.

However, Kanan'tú'lia's eyes were kept upon the boy that had lost the fight, watching as he made his way to the nearby pool. The young girl didn't know why it was that he, out of all of them, that had caught her attention but now her curiosity had gotten the better of her. For some reason, she wanted to go over to him and reveal herself, to say hello to him. In the back of her mind she knew that was a bad idea, her mother's warning repeating in her thoughts about how many city-born do not take kindly to them and how they tend to attack them on sight. Somehow though, Kanan'tú'lia had the feeling that might not happen with this boy.

With that in mind, she glanced over to her right, seeing that the trees around them actually gave her a perfect path toward the spring, which would spare her from the eyes of the other city-borns and place her over the interesting boy. Smiling, she briefly scanned the gaggle below to make sure they weren't looking her way before she rose up stealthily, running and leaping up the closest tree.

Keeping hidden amongst the leaves, she carefully jumped through the trees until she was finally over the boy. Now that she was closer, she managed to pick out a few details about him. It was clear that he was still a minor, as his light brown skin glowed with youth, but he seemed tall- definitely taller than her- and was a little lanky. He looked quite a few cycles older than her, but was difficult to tell from where she was crouched. Even still, she had to admit that he was quite cute looking, despite the trickle of blood she spotted running down his snout.

She watched as he knelt at the waters edge, dipping his hands into the clear red pool and cupped them, splashing the liquid into his face to clear away the blood. From over the voices of the other nearby boys and the howling wind, she could hear him grumbling angrily to himself. It seems as though he wasn't very happy about being beaten by the other boy.

Upon finishing with her observation, Kanan'tú'lia glanced around as she attempted to work out how to gain his attention without alerting the other city-borns around him. But before she even got one idea, that was when the boy's attention was soon brought to a deep voice calling out. Jumping in surprise and ducking back behind the leaves- as she had leaned out to get a better look at the boy below- Kanan'tú'lia spotted one of the adults walking over to him.

The adult was quite an intimidating looking man. He was very tall and muscular, clad in a gold metal suit with copper accents and a long purple cape. Kanan'tú'lia recognised the fur of the cloak was doarmir fur, but she had never seen doarmir fur that colour before. She also noticed that the man's helmet was tucked under his arm, showing his tough looking brown hide and the number of scars crossing his face and head. It was clear this man had been in numerous fights and seen things that Kanan'tú'lia could never hope to.

The adult stopped a little ways from the boy, speaking to him in a quiet but firm way. The boy responded with a voice laden with venom, clearly angry about what was said to him. Or maybe he was ranting about losing to the other boy, it was hard for the girl to work out. Either way though, the adult man's mandibles twitched as he stepped up to the younger's side, kneeling down beside him and setting his helmet down on the ground before him.

As the adult began talking again,Kanan'tú'lia gave up on the hope of distinguishing what they were saying to each other. She could only guess that the adult was reassuring the boy, as the tone he was using was the same one her tutors used whenever she got something wrong and got frustrated about it.

But one thing that she did noticed was that these two seemed to have a significant bond with one another, telling the girl that maybe these two were family. Due to the obvious age different between them, it didn't take long for Kanan'tú'lia to work out that these two could be father and son. Or maybe uncle and nephew, she wasn't sure.

But then she was snapped out of her thoughts when the voice of another adult called over to them, catching the man's attention, to which he glanced over and gave him some words of acknowledgement. When the other adult walked away, the man turned back to the boy, speaking softly with him again before he brandished something from his belt. Kanan'tú'lia leaned over to get a clear look at what it was, soon seeing that it was a dagger. It looked as though it was made from some sort of metal, which was something the girl had never seen before. The weapons back in her tribe were either crafted from stone, wood or the bones of the animals they hunt, but never from metal, therefore Kanan'tú'lia's interest had increased at this.

The man spoke again, as though he was explaining something as the boy took the dagger and studied it. Soon enough though, the adult gave the younger a friendly parting as he patted him on the shoulder before he lifted his helmet and walked off, leaving the boy alone again.

After that, the boy stayed knelt at the bank for a while, simply staring at the dagger and at his own reflection. It seemed as though he was lost in his own thoughts as he appraised the weapon, running a finger over the blade in contemplation. Kanan'tú'lia leaned over the leaves some more, with the intention of getting a better look at his lowered face through his reflection in the water.

However, it seemed that she leant over too far, as the branch creaked threateningly which shook it slightly, causing her chest to explode in panic. She quickly backed up, fearing that the branch would break and cause her to tumble down, but thankfully all that happened was a few leaves falling from their perch.

But the noise had caught the boy's attention from down below, as she saw him snap his gaze up to her hiding spot. He watched the leaves fall from the branch before studying the tree, yelling up with a suspicious tone in his voice. Kanan'tú'lia kept as still as she could possibly be, praying to the Ancestor's that he wouldn't spot her.

Thankfully her prayers were answered, as she noticed him frown before shaking his head, returning his gaze to the dagger in his hand. She let out a quiet sigh of relief at that. She wanted him to know that she was here, yes, but not this way. If he spotted her now, then it was safe to assume that he would think she was spying on him, or looking to attack him and he might attack her in turn. That was the last thing she wanted, so she stayed exactly where she was.

However, it didn't seem that she would get the chance to get him alone though, as an adult further into the oasis started yelling out commands to the younglings, which prompted the group of boys to begin packing away what possessions they had. The boy below her also rose up, but he didn't return to the group straight away. Instead, he glanced at the old dagger in his hand once more and Kanan'tú'lia could see his thoughts racing. Before long though, he whispered a word with a shake of his head, dropping the dagger on the floor before he walked away.

Surprised by this, Kanan'tú'lia watched him until he disappeared among the crowd of youths. Why did he leave the dagger behind? Didn't he realise the significance of what his relative had done for him? Giving someone their weapon meant that the receiver had the giver's full trust, and that meant much more if the exchange were between blood kin. Didn't that boy know that he had just dishonoured that trust by throwing away the weapon away like that?

Seeing that the company had started to move on, leaving her alone in the oasis, Kanan'tú'lia decided it was safe for her to come out of hiding. She carefully slid down the tree, landing in a crouch upon reaching the ground. She then dashed over to where the boy had left his dagger, bending down and picking it up. Standing up straight, the girl cocked her head as she dusted the sand off the weapon.

Up close, the dagger was much older than she originally thought it was. The metal was completely dulled but had interesting engravings on it, making it impossible for her to see her reflection in it, and very rounded which made it too thick and not very efficient at all. The hilt was worn but well cared for, the guard and pommel inlaid with interesting looking patterns. She had no idea if those patterns meant anything, but they looked really pretty regardless. It was clear that this dagger wasn't meant to be used for battle, as it was too old and blunt for that, so why did the man give it to the boy if it was useless? Maybe that was why he had thrown it away.

Humming in thought, Kanan'tú'lia ran her finger over the blade of the dagger, frowning in confusion. She then wrapped her hand around it, just to test if its look actually deceived its usefulness, only for the 'blade' to shift slightly. Surrpised, Kanan'tú'lia blinked at the weapon, moving the 'blade' again to find it sliding down, revealing a thinner and much shinier strip of metal under it. Seeing this, the girl immediately tugged the thing she now knew was a sheath, fully exposing a very obvious blade.

The blade was quite clearly well cared for, as it was shinier than the sheath it was encased in, but it was still quite obvious that it was old. Cocking her head, she stuffed the sheath under her arm and ran one finger along the weapon, only to let out a gasp of pain. She jerked her finger away, looking at the affected area to see a small bead of indigo blood well up from the cut and run down her finger. Spirits, the blade was really sharp, so that mean it _was_ still fit for combat. If that was the case, the boy should really have this back, he may need it. She knew, however, that she wasn't going to be able to give it to him now without drawing attention on herself, the other boys and the adults might not like it if she suddenly turned up with a weapon in hand. In which case, she decided to hold on to it until she saw the boy again, then she'll give it to him and have the chance to meet him at the same time.

In the mentime, she had to keep it hidden from her mother and grandmother. Especially her mother, because if she finds out, she'll know that she wondered into the tundra on her own and she'll be in big trouble. Her mother will also take the boy's dagger away and have her watched all the time so she couldn't go out into the tundra, and she'll never see the boy again.

No, nobody must ever know. Not even Tahsé'ton.

Decision made, Kanan'tú'lia nodded and slipped the sheath back over the blade, stuffing the dagger as far into her pouch as it could go. Once it was securely away she pivoted around, immediately running back to the village. The second sun would be up soon, and she needed to get back before someone realises that she isn't there.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Slithering through the cliff pass, Kanan'tú'lia whipped her head in every direction in search of anyone. Village life tended to begin early and as such, the hunters would begin patrolling the grounds soon. Maybe even heading for the pass to hunt out in the tundra. If anyone caught her here, she would be in major trouble.

Thankfully, no one seemed to be around. Sighing with relief, Kanan'tú'lia continued onward, now sprinting full speed toward the village entrance. She made it in without anyone seeing her and then walked the perimeter of the inner wall, spotting many of the clan wondering the village, beginning their work for the day. The herders were over by the enormous pens that contained the village's livestock. As it was spring, there was no doubt that they were preparing to tend to the breeding colo.

The colo were medium sized domestic creatures that supplies the village with meats. In fact, the animals were very common across the planet, reared by Sangheili to farm them for its rich meat.

Of course, they weren't the only animals that the village breed and care for. There was also the quillick, small predatory animals that are trained to verture out with the hunters to track down a number of mammals for them. They also had a small pack of thremaleon, which were a small and viscious species of running lizard that is believed to be near extinction. Their ancestors had tracked and captured the predators era's ago in the desert and as the generations went on, slowly domesticated the animals until it was possible to hand rear them without fear. Though children were still forbidden to enter their pens as the thremaleon tend to attack small to medium sized prey. The lizard's pelt is very tough and they were not only reared for their meat, but also to create leather for the hunters.

Lastly, there were the velithra. Very tall animals, often used as beasts of burden, such as ploughing the nearby fields where the village grows their own crops, and for pulling carts and caravans for when the village needs to trade with the city. The village had a steady population of the animals, each given their own pens which were wide enough for them to freely roam with little hassle.

That was where Kanan'tú'lia wondered past, watching the colo and velithra graze on their feed and the herders throwing meats to the thremaleon and quillick. She soon made it into the village proper without any hassle, and thus began to make her way to her family's little hut. She pushed open the door, hoping that neither her mother or grandmother was within.

Unfortunately luck was not on her side, as she immediately spotted her grandmother knelt before the fireplace in the centre of the hut, staring intently into the embers. Thankfully the girl's mother wasn't in sight, but Kanan'tú'lia never had the opportunity to back out from the doorway before the elder woman's eyes snapped up, locking onto her form instantly. The girl felt her chest tighten at that, knowing that the elder had seen her. Having no way to avoid this confrontation, she stepped into the hut and closed the door behind her, folding her hands behind her back after that.

" **/** Good morning, grandmama. **\** " she said sheepishly, almost certain that the older woman could see into her mind and instantly know exactly what she had been up to.

Her grandmother's wrinkled mandibles flexed as she stared at her granddaughter, regarding her with her wisened gaze. It was clear that when the elder was in her prime, she was a very beautiful woman. Now though, her wrinkled chocolate skin had been weathered by both age and the elements, as it was dotted with numerous ageing spots across her hide and her once velvety skin was now rough. Her caramel eyes were also dark with age but held great wisdom within the depths, showcasing her life experiences through them. She was clad in a heavy tanned robe, which added bulk to her frail body, and was decorated with an assortment of colours and patterns and was tied together with an elaborate sash. Her thin wrists were encased with bone jewellery, which had been dyed in blues, reds and purples as well as a thick bone necklace which rested over her shoulders. As she was still leader of the clan, she also had an elaborate headress- which was currently sat at her side- and was decorated with beads and feathers, as well as a staff that was decorated similarly which she used to lean on when walking.

All in all, despite the woman's fragile frame, she was the epitome of authority, and Kanan'tú'lia always felt very small whenever she was under her grandmother's gaze.

Silence stretched on between the two of them for a while, making the young girl fidget nervously. Finally though, the elder's mandibles spread in a small smile as she lifted a thin wrinkled hand, beckoning the young girl with a gesture. " **/** Come here child. **\** " she said softly, her voice as whithered as her appearance.

Not wanting to disobey her elder, Kanan'tú'lia immediately stepped further into the hut until she stood at the opposite side of the firepit, fiddling with her missing thumb behind her back as she waited for her grandmother to speak again.

The elder appraised the young girl thoroughly, seeing the indigo stains and dust on her tunic. She shook her head at this. " **/** What a mess you are, my dear. **\** " she observed, pointing to the blood. " **/** You should have had that cleaned last night. **\** "

The girl just shrugged. " **/** I forgot. **\** "

Her grandmother smiled knowingly at that, nodding her head slowly as she turned her gaze back to the fire, picking up a stick to prod it. " **/** Too busy with the thoughts of leaving the valley, hmm? **\** " she glanced back up, seeing to her amusement that her granddaughter had a look of shock on her face, her body going ridgid as she fought for what to say. The elder laughed at that. " **/** Oh do not worry yourself child, the lust for adventure is common in younglings, I cannot fault you for induldging your natural curiosity. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia cocked a suspicious brow at that. " **/** You're not mad? **\** " she asked hesitantly.

" **/** What would be the point of becoming angry and scolding you? **\** " the elder responded with a rhetoric question. " **/** You will only ignore this old woman's warnings and venture off again anyway. I know, I used to do the exact same thing when I was your age. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia smirked at that, moving around the firepit before she plopped down next to her grandmother, leaning her head carefully on the woman's thigh. " **/** Nope. **\** " she dismissed as she glanced up at the elder's face with sparkling emerald eyes. " **/** You were never my age, grandmama. You're as old as the whole world. **\** "

Her grandmother laughed heartily at that, patting the girl's shoulder as she giggled with her. " **/** Oh, that cheek. I have half a mind to give you a good slap on the wrist for that. **\** "

" **/** But you're not even mad, grandmama. **\** " Kanan'tú'lia pointed out, knowing full well that she was right.

" **/** That is true. **\** " the elder confirmed before she continued. " **/** So then, what is it that you found while out adventuring, my dear? **\** "

Knowing that she can't tell her grandmother about her run in with the city-borns, Kanan'tú'lia merely shrugged. However, before she had the chance to speak, that was when the door to the hut opened. She and her grandmother both glanced over to the doorway, immediately seeing the third member of their family standing there. Scrambling to her feet while being careful not to hurt her grandmother, Kanan'tú'lia linked her hands behind her back as she smile innocently up at her mother as she paced up to the firepit. "/Good morning, mama.\" she said sweetly.

Her mother, Ke'atuól'ti, crossed her slender arms as she regarded her daughter with parental suspicion. The woman was about thirty cycles old, but still looked young and beautiful. Ke'atuól'ti had dark chocolate skin with darker freckles dotted randomly over her face and arms. Her eyes were bright swirls of caramel which plainly held the wisdom and experience that she was greatly respected for. Her clothing consisted of a tanned robe that draped gracefully over her narrow shoulders, decorated with an assortment of colours, patterns and bone jewellery with a brightly coloured scarf. Resting on the scarf was a small metal pendent with a red gem in the centre; apparently a gift from Kanan'tú'lia's father. Under the robe, she wore a simple short sleeved shirt that reached the tops of her thighs, tied together by a decorated maroon sash and plain trousers tucked into snug fitting boots.

She was the picture of authority as was the intention, since she was soon to take over command of the clan.

Ke'atuól'ti frowned. " **/** Kanan'tú'lia, where have you been? I have been looking for you all morning. **\** " Kanan'tú'lia just shrugged her shoulders with a noncommittal noise. Ke'atuól'ti sighed at that, rubbing her forehead in clear irritation. " **/** Kanan'tú'lia. **\** "

It was then that Ke'atuól'ti's mother let out a laugh, looking to her daughter with a roll of her yes. " **/** Oh Ke'atuól'ti, leave the girl be would you. Let her have her freedom while she's still young. **\** "

Closing her eyes, Ke'atuól'ti took a breath through her nose as she knelt in front of the fire. " **/** I know mother, I know. But I worry for her. **\** "

" **/** And that is understandable, but she is still a child so allow her to be one outside of training. **\** "

As the two adults talked, Kanan'tú'lia tuned them out as she thought back to the young boy in the oasis. She really wanted to meet with him, but that was when she realised that it woudn't exactly mean much if neither one of them could understand what the other was saying. Glancing up at her relatives, the young Sangheili knew that her grandmother was incredibly versed in the city-born language, as she often spoke with the city-borns whenever they visited the village. Her mother knew the language as well, but Kanan'tú'lia wanted her grandmother to teach her since in her mind, the elder was a lot more experienced and could teach her much faster.

Therefore, once the two adults finished talking, Kanan'tú'lia glanced to her grandmother. " **/** Grandmama? **\** " she began tentitively. Once the elder's attention was on her, the girl continued. " **/** Can you teach me the city-born's language? **\** "

Upon her asking her question, both the older Sangheili rose their brows in surprise. Her mother especially. " **/** Whatever prompted this, Kanan'tú'lia? You've never shown an interest in learning the language before. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia shrugged. " **/** I just want to. **\** " she merely in response.

Her grandmother on the other hand smiled. " **/** Oh, what does it matter if she wasn't interested in the past. **\** " she looked to her granddaughter then as she addressed her. " **/** If you truly wish to learn the language, then I will be more than happy to teach you. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia squealed in delight at this, wrapping her arms around her grandmother in clear graditude. " **/** Thank you, grandmama! **\** "

Ke'atuól'ti sighed, glancing deeply in the fire as her mother explained what learning a new language would entail. If the woman was being honest with herself, then she had the suspicion that her daughter's new interest had a much deeper meaning than the girl was willing to divulge. Kanan'tú'lia disappearing for a while and then suddenly reappearing with the desire to learn the city language made red flags appear in the woman's mind. Having said that though, maybe her daughter merely wished to learn the language for when the day her father finally returns.

She hadn't seen the girl's father since that day seven cycles ago, and all he had left her with was the pendent round her neck and an egg in her belly, though the latter was unintentional. It had truly surprised Ke'atuól'ti when she found out she was pregnant with Kanan'tú'lia, as she wasn't even in season when she mated with the girl's father. As such, the man had no idea that he had sired a daughter with her, and that saddened her greatly. He would be proud of everything Kanan'tú'lia had accomplished at her age, that much she was sure of.

It was why Ke'atuól'ti didn't protest when her mother began to teach Kanan'tú'lia the city language. At least now she knew her daughter would have the means to speak with her father if he ever returned. That, and it was good to see the young girl spend time with her grandmother. With every day that passes meant a greater chance that her mother would pass away, so therefore it was best for Kanan'tú'lia to spend whatever time she could with her before that fateful day comes.

Soon enough, time had flown past them and it was high time for Kanan'tú'lia to return to her lessons with the hunters. However, while her mother was tending to her grandmother, the girl took the opportunity to get to her bedding. She turned so her front was facing the two adults, briefly glancing at them to make sure they weren't looking her way before she shifted the board the slightest bit, revealing a hole dug underneath. Reaching into her belt pouch while double checking neither her mother or grandmother had seen her, Kanan'tú'lia pulled out the city-born boy's dagger and quickly slipped it under the board, recovering it instantly.

With the dagger now out of the way, Kanan'tú'lia left the hut and rushed to her lessons. Hopefully, neither of her relatives will think to look under her bed and the weapon will stay safe.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Days had swiftly turned into weeks as Kanan'tú'lia went about her daily life. During that time she swapped between learning to be a hunter with her tutors, and learning the city-born's language with her grandmother. Between both, she made the effort to sneak out of the village and return to the oasis, hoping that the boy and his group came back there. Thus far sadly, they didn't return.

Even still, it gave Kanan'tú'lia the time she needed to gain a basic understanding of their language. Now she knows simple greetings and farewells as well as a few smaller words. It wasn't much, but it was a start.

Soon enough, Kanan'tú'lia once again ran to the oasis early one morning, the first sun steadily rising as she arrived. As she rested herself on a tall rock formation and peeked over, her hearts fluttered in delight. The camp was back. A wide smile spread on her face as she watched the young boys tend to their duties in the camp, studying each individual for her interesting boy.

She spotted what could potentially be him kneeling at the pool, appearing to be his clothing as he was only clad in a loincloth. To confirm, she climbed into the trees and made her way over to him, being sure to be careful with her footing. Now that she was above him, excitement erupted in her chest when she found that it was actually him. Now the question was, how exactly is she going to get his attention?

Ideas ran through her mind, but in the end she decided to drop down into the shrubbery near the pool, after that she could purposely cause a noise and see if that worked. So she immediately jumped to the next tree and climbed down it, making sure nobody saw her as she did so.

Finally she slipped into the shrubbery, glancing over to the boy to make sure he didn't move. Seeing that he was still there, she glanced down to the sandy ground, noticing that the area around the tree trunk was littered with twigs and sticks. In most scenarios, Kanan'tú'lia would make tremendous effort to avoid stepping on them, but this time she wanted to get the boy's attention. And since he was a little ways from the rest of the group, then hopefully only he will come over and investigate.

With that in mind, Kanan'tú'lia placed her hoof over a selection of twigs and put her full weight on them, snapping them in half. The resulting noise created the desired effect, as the boy's head snapped up toward the noise. Seeing that her plan worked, Kanan'tú'lia dashed quickly and quietly into the shrubbery further in as he called out questioningly, raising from the pool side. From her spot in the bushes, Kanan'tú'lia watched the boy slowly creep through, his whole body poised as though he was readying himself for a fight. Hopefully when she reveals herself, he won't attack her.

After letting him glance around for a second, she prepared to leave the shrubbery as she called out in his language. "Hello."

The boy stiffened, pivoting around when he heard her heavily accented voice with his fists raised. She stood up slowly from her hiding place, being sure to keep her hands in the air to show him that she meant no harm. Once she was completely out of the bush, she smiled brightly at him as he stared at her in clear shock.

Now she was this close to him, she noticed some more details about him that she missed before. Such as his eyes. They were a pair of deep blue eyes, similar in colour to the feathers of a male skolaek when they spread them to intimidate inturders. Kanan'tú'lia had never seen a pair of such pretty eyes on a Sangheili before.

She was almost lost in those orbs before the boy relaxed his stance, speaking to her in a voice that had clearly just broke. It sounded questioning, but Kanan'tú'lia still didn't have enough of an understanding of his language to distinguish what he said. Even still, she continued to smile at him as she reached into her belt pouch and grabbed the dagger, slowly bringing it around and presented it to him.

"You." she first said in the city language, before she unconciously converted to her own. " **/** This is yours, you should have it back. **\** "

The boy blinked at her, an expression that she couldn't place crossing his face as she mentally kicked herself. She didn't realise how hard it was to speak in another language until now, not even noticing that she spoke her own until it was too late.

However, it surprised her when the boy, after a bout of silence, spoke to her again in _her own_ _language_. " **/** You a Wonderer? **\** "

For a second, she stared at him in shock before pure excitement poured into her. She bouced on the spot a couple times before she began speaking to him again uncontrollably in her own language. " **/** You know my own language? By the Ancestors, that's amazing! I didn't know you knew my language, that makes this so much easier to talk to each other! **\** "

"Woah woah!" he yelled out, raising his own hands in an effot to slow her down, glancing around to make sure nobody had heard them. Glancing back at her, he spoke to her again. " **/** Slow down. Don't... understand well. **\** " he told her brokenly, showing that he wasn't that verse in her own language.

She nodded in understanding, obviously still delighted that he knew her language. " **/** Sorry. **\** " she apologised as she took a couple steps closer to him, her grin very wide and bright as she presented the dagger to him again. " **/** Here, this is yours. **\** "

He glanced down at the weapon, surprise crossing his expression again as he slowly rised his hand, almost as if he didn't believe what he was seeing. Before long, he gripped the hilt and lifted it out of her hands, studying it for a second and then met her emerald eyes. He blinked a couple times, but he spoke up again soon enough. " **/** Where- where you find this? **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia shrugged. " **/** You left it behind. **\** " she merely replied.

He blinked at her again, lowering his gaze to the weapon in his hand, huffing in disbelief. In the next second though, his expression changed to one of confused suspicion as he snapped his blue eyes back up to her. " **/** Wait. You... followed me? **\** "

Knowing what he meant by that, Kanan'tú'lia immediately attempted to reassure him. " **/** No no no! **\** " she dismissed quickly, determined to explain herself. " **/** I found you and you left this behind. I thought I'd hold on to it until you came back. **\** "

He cocked a brow ridge at her, be she could see that he accepted her explanation as he glanced down at the dagger again. He ran his hand over the curved sheath before wrapping his hand around it, tugging it off the blade in a smooth motion. With the weapon now fully exposed, he appraised it. Kanan'tú'lia guessed that he was searching for imperfections or damage, but she knew that he wouldn't find any- apart from what was there to begin with. She did her absolute best to ensure it wouldn't get damaged as she took care of it.

Before long, the boy glanced back up at her. " **/** You had it this whole time? **\** " he asked her, clearly surprised. She nodded in response, to which he let out a breath as he looked back down at the weapon. He muttered some words in his language that Kanan'tú'lia had no hope of translating, but it obviously wasn't anything negative. She vibrated her mandibles as she fiddled with her missing thumb, waiting until he finished talking before she spoke up.

" **/** Why did you leave it behind? **\** " she asked, genuinely curious. He rose his blue eyes to her, a questioning look in them, therefore she clarified. " **/** I mean, you just threw it on the floor after that man gave it you. Why did you do that? **\** "

He adverted his eyes then, sighing as he turned his body away from her. " **/** I don't know. **\** " he confessed. " **/** Was angry and... stupid. I felt bad for it and felt I... betray father's trust. **\** "

Hearing that, Kanan'tú'lia nodded though the boy didn't see it. She had the feeling the man who gave him the dagger was his father, so she mentally patted herself on the back for that. He then turned back around, gazing into her emerald eyes as he gave her a small smile. " **/** Thank you... for keeping it. **\** " he told her, to which she smiled brightly back.

However, just as she was about to say something more, that was when a voice from further into the camp yelled out. Due to the fact the boy snapped his gaze over to the source, that probably indicated that someone was looking for him. That meant that their time together was drawing to a close, which made Kanan'tú'lia feel really disappointed. The boy glanced over to her, an apologetic look on his face as he slid the dagger back into its case and slipped it into his belt. " **/** Sorry. **\** " he told her. " **/** Must go. **\** "

As he was about to run off, Kanan'tú'lia widened her eyes when a realisation hit her. She didn't even know his name. Jerking forward and gripping his arm, she spoke out in a rush. " **/** Wait! I don't even know your name. **\** "

He glanced back at her, surprised that she had reached out and touched him like that. What surprised her though was, despite his lanky physic, his hide was actually tougher than she thought it was going to be. Her skin in comparison is fairly soft still, if a little weather worn, but she had expected his skin to be the same. That told her that he was actually much older than she originally thought. Frankly, that shouldn't have surprised her but it did.

After staring at her for a second, the boy grinded his mandibles before replying tersely. " **/** Sulr 'Sakum. **\** "

Hearing that, Kanan'tú'lia gave him a smile as she let go of his arm. She flattened a hand on her chest. " **/** Kanan'tú'lia. **\** " she greeted back.

Sulr frowned at that, but was distracted again when someone in the camp yelled out what she now knew was his name again. He vibrated his mandibles in a gesture of harriedness before glancing back at her. " **/** Good... meeting you. Have to go now. **\** " at that, he turned away from her and ran back through the bushes.

Kanan'tú'lia watched him go for a moment, seeing through the shrubbery that he ran back to his previous spot by the pool and greeted the other boy who yelled out to him. As the two conversed, the girl grinned as she scaled the nearest tree and perched on a high branch. She watched as Sulr gathered his supplies as the other boy spoke with him, one that was much shorter than him- signifying that he was younger- but slightly more muscled. It was obvious these two were on friendly terms with each other, as the younger boy seemed to be playfully jibing while Sulr half-heartedly defended.

As Kanan'tú'lia watched, she smiled when Sulr pushed the other boy away, though it was clear he wasn't angry. The other boy's smirk merely widened, beginning to speak to Sulr in a teasing way as the two walked further into the camp.

Kanan'tú'lia continued to watch the two, sort of hoping in the back of her mind that Sulr would turn back around so she could wave to him but she knew that wouldn't happen. If he did that, then the others would wonder what he was looking at and may see her and the last thing she wanted was to get flooded by a bunch of boys, or get herself or Sulr into trouble with them or the adults.

Speaking of which, she should probably head back to the village now. The morning was getted on and her mother had been becoming more suspicious of her as of late, what with her disappearing every morning. The last thing she wanted was for her mother to find out what she had been doing and then restrict her to the valley grounds. Actually now that she thought about it, it would probably be best if she stays at the village for a little while. Now that Sulr had his weapon back her mission had been accomplished, but she could sneak out to see him again in the future if he ever comes back.

Decision made, Kanan'tú'lia traversed across the trees until she was adequately out of sight, dropping down to the ground before she started back for the valley.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Once the girl got back, the first person Kanan'tú'lia ran into upon entering the village walls was Tahsé'ton. The boy gave her a smile when he saw her, waving her over. " **/** Kanan'tú'lia, over here!\" he yelled. The young Sangheili girl trotted over to her friend, smiling widely once she was before him.

" **/** Hello Tahsé'ton. What are you doing around here? **\** " she asked with a cock of her head.

Tahsé'ton crossed his arms as he replied. " **/** I need your help. Master Nanien has asked me to go to the farm fields and hunt for the rodents in the crops. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia hummed at that. " **/** Aren't you suppose to do that by yourself **\** "

" **/** No. **\** " he shook his head. " **/** Master Nanien said I could choose a partner to help me, and I wanted it to be you. I've been looking for you since then. It's really strange that you keep disappearing all the time Kanan'tú'lia. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia's mandibles grinded together uneasily at that. Obviously, she wasn't about to tell Tahsé'ton why she disappears all the time, but it had made her worry now. If her closest friend had been noticing her absence, then it was definite that her mother had noticed as well. That solidified her decision to stay in the village for a little while, just to throw off any suspicion. Hopefully she doesn't get into trouble for it, but just in case she decided to join Tahsé'ton with his hunt, to delay any telling off she may get.

" **/** Okay, I'll come with you. **\** " she told him with a nod. He smiled widely in response, gesturing to her to follow him as he ran off, the girl at his heels.

The two children darted across the village, dodging around adults and children alike on the way. At one point, they almost caused the wise woman's apprentice to drop the basket she was carrying. Shouting apologies to the woman, the two finally arrived at the fields, immediately seeing the head farmer already by the gate. Upon approaching, the older man gave the two a smile. " **/** Ah, so you two are my apprentices for the day, are you? **\** "

" **/** Yes, we are. **\** " Tahsé'ton answered for the two of them.

" **/** Good, good. **\** " the farmer nodded, turning to the gate and opening it, stepping in and allowing the two youngsters to follow after him before locking it shut. He then grabbed two satchels and handed them to the children, as well as a sheaf of make-shift flags. " **/** Now then, the two of you know your jobs. Scour the field and catch and kill any rodents you find. Should you find any burrows, place a flag down and I shall deal with them later. **\** " the two nodded in understanding. " **/** Good, then off with you younglings, and good hunting. **\** "

At his word, both Tahsé'ton and Kanan'tú'lia rushed away. The two decided, once they were at the edge of the crop field, to split up and cover more distance, both seperating instantly.

Once Kanan'tú'lia was a fair distance in she slowed down, only then did she truly notice how high the crops really were. While it wasn't exactly growing in one massive field, it was up to her chest which made it difficult to spot anything. Half the time, she couldn't even see her own hooves. Plus moving silently was also an issue, as the ground was laden with fallen crops and dried grass, making even the lightest of steps sound like the footsteps of a giant.

As Kanan'tú'lia continued onward, lightly pushing crops out of her way, she spotted movement in the corner of her eye. She snapped toward the disturbance and pounced, her body disappearing below the crop as she slammed her hands down. Her reward was only grass and dirt. Groaning, she sat up on her knees, straining to gaze over the grass to see where Tahsé'ton was.

She noticed him across the other side of the field, seeing him also disappear under the crops but reappear a moment later, a look of disappointment on his face. Looks like he's not having much luck either. With a sigh, she continued on.

As the morning crawled on, Kanan'tú'lia continued to pounce on anything that resembled a rodent. Half the time it was merely a trick of the shadow, but the rest were the tiny creatures, though they were too fast for the young girl to catch. Occasionally, she ran into Tahsé'ton and after a brief update on each other's progress, which was very little, they seperated again.

Eventually, Kanan'tú'lia learnt that just pouncing on any sort of movement and hoping for the best was getting her nowhere; the rodents were far to fast for her. She decided then and there that she would have to employ some patience and a change of tactics. So therefore, situated in the densest outcropping she could find, Kanan'tú'lia waited.

She waited for what felt like an era, her emerald eyes darting to the slightest of movements, but still she didn't leave her spot. If she had any hope of catching a rodent, she'd have to let them come to her.

Soon though, her patience paid off as right before her, the grass parted as a small, scaly quadruped animal scurried out. It had a rounded head with a pointed nose, which twitched every now and then, and a long round body ending in a short stubby tail. It's legs were lanky, ending in tiny claws that were designed for burrowing. It's black beady eyes darted around, nose twitching as it located a piece of fallen crops. It slowly bounded toward it, beginning to gnaw at it.

The moment Kanan'tú'lia spotted the tiny creature, her whole body tensed up. She watched as it helped itself to the piece of food she had purposely left on the ground to draw them out. She narrowed her eyes, her focus entirely upon the rodent, tensing her body up like a spring ready to be released. Before long, she pounced.

The small creature started in alarm, turning from it's meal as it attempted to dart away from the new threat. However this time, Kanan'tú'lia was successful in her attempt as her hands slammed down on the rodent. It shrieked out in protest, wriggling it's body and clawing at the ground and her fingers in a desperate bid to free itself.

Kanan'tú'lia didn't give it the opportunity. Ignoring the stinging sensation on her flesh, she quickly grabbed it round it's head, promptly snapping it's neck. Almost immediately, the struggles ceased. Smiling in satisfaction, Kanan'tú'lia lifted her first bounty, it's limp body fitting perfectly in her palm as blood began to drip from the rips on it's body. She stuffed it in the small satchel before continuing the hunt.

And so, lesson well learnt, the young girl became more efficient in her hunt. She employed the tactic a few more times, catching several more rodents. She had also found a small number of burrows, which she promptly placed a flag down next to it, like the head farmer told her to do.

Soon, when the second sun was at its highest point, the herd master called out to her and Tahsé'ton to exit the field. When they approached the gate, the herd master greeted them with a look of pride.

" **/** Well done younglings. **\** " he praised. " **/** I see you both have a good haul, a very good sign indeed. As you rest this evening, remember this: today's hunt wasn't just about ridding our crops of vermin. It is about giving you the taste of the kill. What you learn here will carry into the future of our clan, bringing honour among yourselves and those around you. **\** "

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

As they day wore on, Kanan'tú'lia had continued to avoid returing to her hut as much as she could, finding any excuse to keep herself busy. Situated on an outcropping in the cliff face at the back of the village, helping herself to the bounty she had caught today, she had a clear view over the top of the cliffs on the other side.

From up here, she saw the tundra stretching for miles until it turned into the lush forest, with the silhoutte of the mountains at the horizon. The view was beautiful. It was a rare pleasure to catch a sight like this most of the time, both due to her training taking up most of her time, and her mother being far too overprotective of her.

From where she sat on the branch, Kanan'tú'lia could see the large stone walls that was the city hidden within the trees of the forest. She never understood how anyone could live in a place surrounded by stone with little to no nature around. In her seven cycle old mind, she truly felt sorry for the city-borns for living in such a dull place.

Kanan'tú'lia swung her legs back and forth as she sat upon the edge, sighing as she leant her head in her palm. As she looked out, she started to wonder if Sulr lived there, protected behind the towering stone walls. It was no wonder his group sought to come out into the plains, if she had been trapped behind those walls then she too would want to escape.

It was then that she was startled out of her pondering as she heard a scrambling sound, followed by a voice crying out in alarm. Turning to the disturbance, the young Sangheili spotted a flustered Tahsé'ton struggling to pull himself up onto the ledge below her. She covered her mouth to stifle a giggle as she reached down to him, while at the same time keeping an eye on the satchel to ensure it doesn't fall off.

" **/** Thank you Kanan'tú'lia. **\** " he babbled out in embarrassment. She, in response, laughed.

" **/** Oh Tahsé'ton, you are very silly! **\** "

The young boy pouted as he got comfortable on the ledge, taking off his satchel and placing it at his side. Shaking her head, Kanan'tú'lia reached into her satchel and pulled out a rodent, beginning to knaw on it as Tahsé'ton did the same. As he too began eating, Kanan'tú'lia swallowed down the piece she ripped off before lowering the carcass, her thoughts returned to the city-borns and their home.

Gazing back to the city in the distance, she drew Tahsé'ton's attention to it. " **/** Why do you think the city-borns live in a place like that, Tahsé'ton? How can they stand it? **\** "

Tahsé'ton cocked a brow ridge, pausing in his eating as he regarded the curious girl. " **/** I don't know, Kanan'tú'lia. **\** " he replied truthfully.

Kanan'tú'lia sighed, slumping her head down into her palm again as she continued to stare at the distant city. She glanced over her shoulder to look him in the eye after a moment. " **/** It just seems so boring, being surrounded by stone. It doesn't look like much fun to climb than the cliffs. **\** "

" **/** Maybe the city-borns are just as boring. Maybe they build the city like that because it's all they know. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia just shrugged, her mind returning to Sulr again. He didn't seem boring, but he was only one person and he didn't represent all the city-borns, so maybe Tahsé'ton was right. " **/** I guess. **\** "

As time went on, the two younglings continued to eat their bounty in silence, just simply enjoying each others company.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

The following day, Kanan'tú'lia sat upon the wooden fencing that surrounded the quillick pen, watching the hunters train with the animals. She sighed in bordem. As she had predicted the other day, her mother did indeed give her a scolding, telling her that she had enough of her disappearing every morning and making her worry. She apologised of course, telling her mother that she wouldn't do it again, but her mother was still angry. With her grandmother becoming worse, a great deal of stress was laying upon the woman and it showed by how harsh some of her words were. It upset the young girl greatly, more so when her mother gave her a punishment to carry out.

It was why Kanan'tú'lia was at the quillick pen to begin with, as she had been forced by her mother to spend the day with the carers and look after the animals. And it was really boring. The girl had no idea that looking after animals could be so, but here she was discovering it first hand.

As for her mother, she had been absent all day. In fact, as far as Kanan'tú'lia knew, she hadn't left the hut at all but she wasn't entirely sure. Her hut was across the other side of the village and since she was restricted to the pens, she had no way of knowing if her mother had left the hut. Not that she cared at the moment that is, since she was still really bitter about her mother shouting at her like she did last night.

Just as Kanan'tú'lia was about to jump off the fence and go search for the herd master for something to do, that was when Kanan'tú'lia heard some commotion behind her. Confused, the young Sangheili girl twisted her spine around to look, seeing the shaman's apprentice rushing across the village thoroughfare, shouting apologies and requests for space from the people around her, a basket balanced in her arms. Kanan'tú'lia's eyes widened when she realised the woman was heading toward her home. Suddenly worried, Kanan'tú'lia vaulted over the fence and ran after her, completely disregarding her punishment for the time being.

The apprentice did indeed head straight for her home, swiftly slipping through the door despite having a heavy basket in her arms. Truly concerned now, Kanan'tú'lia bounded up to her home and ran to the side wall, knowing there was a big enough crack through the wooden walls for her to see into. Pressing her face against the wall, the girl managed to see through the crack into her home, immediately noticing the elder shaman taking the basket from her apprentice. Her mother was standing nearby, an obvious expression of sadness and worry on her face, her caramel eyes glistening with unshead tears. Kanan'tú'lia knew immediately that something was wrong.

As she watched, the wise woman knelt beside the bed where the sickly form of her grandmother still lay. Her chest became cold as she realised what was going on, bounding to her feet in an instant and dashed to the entrance. She threw the door open, disreagrding the surprised looks of her mother and the apprentice, and rushed to stand by the shaman.

" **/** Grandmama! **\** " she yelled, but she saw that the woman didn't hear her as her eyes were shut. But since she was still breathing- abeit very slowly- that showed that she was only unconscious.

" **/** Kanan'tú'lia!? **\** " her mother called out in shock, obviously surprised at her sudden appearance. " **/** By the Ancestors, you shouldn't be here! **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia ignored her, collapsing to her knees and leaning against her grandmother's bed, her emerald eyes beginning to tear up as she continued yelling. " **/** No, grandmama wake up! You have to wake up! **\** "

At her side, the shaman sighed sadly as she turned to the other two women in the hut. " **/** Ke'atuól'ti, take her out of here now, she does not need to see this. Ts'vaaní, I require your assistance. **\** "

Ke'atuól'ti immediately went to Kanan'tú'lia's side as Ts'vaaní moved to assist the shaman, grabbing her daughter's arms and lifting her from the floor. The little girl fought against the hold though, yelling out to let her go and crying for her grandmother as her mother pulled her from the bedside.

" **/** Kanan'tú'lia, please. **\** " Ke'atuól'ti pleaded, her voice firm but full of sorrow. " **/** Please do not fight me, just come on outside, please. **\** "

But Kanan'tú'lia wasn't listening, she just continued to fight and shout as tears poured from her eyes. Knowing that her daughter wasn't about to comply any time soon, Ke'atuól'ti sharply pivoted the girl around and lifted her off the ground, holding her tight against her body as she began walking out as Kanan'tú'lia continued to cry and reach over her shoulder, as though she could touch her grandmother from this distance.

Once Ke'atuól'ti was outside the hut though, that was when Kanan'tú'lia finally gave up and just wrapped her arms tightly around her mother's neck and her legs around her waist, beginning to sob loudly in earnest which caught the attention of some of the villagers nearby. Ke'atuól'ti hugged her child back, smoothing a comforting hand down the youngling's neck as she fought against her own tears.

Ke'atuól'ti had been dreading this day for a long time. As good as the shaman was in the healing arts, the woman understood that there was nothing the elder could do. Her mother was going to die. It hurt her immensely, but seeing her daughter in this state truly broke her hearts. She had been preparing for this day as season after season passed, but Kanan'tú'lia was still a child who had been focused on her own daily activites and thus was not prepared for her grandmother's passing. It was part of the reason she had sent her daughter away from the hut, hoping that giving her this punishment meant that she wouldn't have to deal with the sight of her grandmother slowly dying. She should have known that her precarious daughter would come running when something seemed amiss.

She knew no words would comfort the girl, so she merely held her and allowed her to let out her sorrow as she waited for the inevitable news.

After what felt like hours of waiting, the entrance door opened. By this time Ke'atuól'ti had sat against the walls of her home, her daughter sat in her lap while continuing to hug her with the tiniest of sobs. Once the shaman and her appreantice stepped out, the two glanced up at them, a look of hope on Kanan'tú'lia's face. However, when Ke'atuól'ti saw the grim expressions on both their faces, she knew what the news was.

Kanan'tú'lia leant back and rose off her mother, studying the faces of the two as the woman rose from the floor as well. " **/** Is grandmama okay? **\** " she asked them, hoping with all her being that they had good news.

Unfortunately, both the wise woman and Ts'vaaní lowered their gazes. " **/** I am sorry, child **\** " the shaman whispered sadly.

Knowing immediately what that meant, Kanan'tú'lia's eyes welled up with tears again, letting out a loud cry as she threw herself at her mother. As the girl wept, Ke'atuól'ti fought against the urge to break down as well as her eyes became blurry with tears, wrapping her arms around her daughter as the shaman placed a soft hand on her shoulder.

" **/** I am truly sorry. **\** " she said lowly.

Ke'atuól'ti shook her head. " **/** You did all you could, shaman, but it was inevitable. **\** " she answered back, her voice thick with emotions but forced herself to stay strong. With her mother's passing, the mantle of leadership now fell to her and the clan would be depending on her. Locking gazes with the wise woman, she cleared her throat before speaking again. " **/** Inform the clan of this event, and prepare the funeral. **\** "

" **/** At once. **\** " the shaman nodded, gesturing to Ts'vaaní to follow her, leaving the mother and daughter behind to comfort one another.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Night had fallen when the preparations for the funeral had been completed. Ke'atuól'ti stood beside the tribe shaman, the elder woman leaning on her staff, vaguely listening to all members of her clan gathering behind her. Her young daughter stood by her side, sobbing quietly.

It was a sad day for all of them, not just for herself and Kanan'tú'lia. Ke'atuól'ti's mother had been leader of this clan for many cycles, since before even she was brought into the world. She was greatly respected by the leaders of the city and loved by her people.

Ke'atuól'ti watched as the shaman shuffled forward once their previous leader was set upon a pyre. Her mother's body had been stripped of all possessions, as is ritualistic of their culture; bare as the day she first hatched. The shaman tapped her staff on the ground twice, the tribe deathly silent as she began her prayer.

As Ke'atuól'ti listened to the prayer with one ear, she gazed down at her daughter. Kanan'tú'lia's eyes were once again overflowing, having not stopped crying since they heard the news. Her grandmother's passing had affected her greatly, as the young girl had a very strong bond with her, to which Ke'atuól'ti could understand. She wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulders, letting her lean into her side and wrap her arms around her in turn.

Once the wise woman's chant came to a close, the clan recited the conclusion of the prayer as one. "/The essence departs the vessel, returning to the Spirit of Sanghelios. May the soul be blessed and cradled in the arms of our Ancestors. As within, so without. So let it be. **\** "

At the precise moment the prayer ended, the two hunters that stood either side of the pyre holding torches stepped forward. In unison they both knelt on one knee, bowing their heads as they touched the burning torches to the pyre. Almost immediately it caught fire, spreading quickly and enveloping Ke'atuól'ti's mother. The clan watched on as the fire grew, the darkness of the night eradicated by the orange flames, all staying respectfully quiet in honour of their fallen leader.

As the night wore on and the flames began to lessen, the clan members departed one by one until only Ke'atuól'ti and Kanan'tú'lia remained. The both of them waited until the fire died out completely, openly mourning as the ashes were stirred by the wind, carrying the remains into the abyss of the night air. The ashes flew high, a clear symbol that the Spirit of Sanghelios had brought their relative's soul home.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

 _Hey all. Jeez after more than six years in the making and with multiple re-writes, I finally give you my Halo fan fic. It follows the life of a Sangheili OC I created when Halo 2 came out. Yeah, that's how long I've had this idea._

Anyway, I made the names complicated to pronounce on purpose, as the Eternal Wanderers are kind of similar to Native Americans. But to help you out, here's how I pronounce them:

Kanan'tú'lia: _Kah-nan-too-lee-ah  
_ Ke'atuól'ti: _Key-ah-too-all-tee  
_ Tahsé'ton: _Tah-say-ton  
And there you go. They are the only ones you need to really concern yourself with for now. As for the speech, here is how it will go throughout the story:  
_" **/** Sangheili ancient language. **\** "  
"Sangheili normal language."  
" _Other Covenant language._ "  
" **{** Human language. **}** "

 _And finally, if anyone is confused about the Sangheili dates I made up, here's the general gist of it:_

 _A cycle is basically a whole year. One Sangheili cycle is the equivalent of approximately three human years, with only four months in it known as seasons, and they change as the seasons do. Each season has approximately 44 days in each. As such, the Sangheili age at a slower rate than humans, living three times as long. This is all headcannon and doesn't necessarily mean that this is confirmed in the Halo verse, but it makes sense to me._

 _All right, nothing else to say apart from read and enjoy._


	3. A Fated Meeting

**34th of the 1st season, 43rd Era, 4309th cycle  
Sangheili Calender  
Eighth Age of Reclamation  
Covenant Calender  
February 24th 2501  
** **UNSC Military Calender**

A whole cycle had passed after the death of Kanan'tú'lia's grandmother and during that time, the now eight cycle old girl's life had become quite hectic. Not only was she cracking down on her physical and language skills, which took up most of her time, but since her mother had risen to leadership the woman had been dealing with a great deal of things going on in the clan and beyond, which made her neglect spending time with her daughter.

As of late, whenever representatives from the Elder Council or other such people from the cities arrived at the village, Kanan'tú'lia had often been pushed to the side. Her mother told her it was because she was too young to understand and that may be so, but it made the girl feel disheartened every time she was told to leave. At least when her grandmother was still alive, she was often given time to talk about what was happening with her. Now though, she felt as if she could barely speak with her mother at all.

Kanan'tú'lia was still only a child, therefore she didn't completely understand the pressure that her mother was under right now. But the girl had begun to feel more and more distant from her relative as time went on, feeling as if she was alone. All she really wanted was her mother's attention, it really wasn't that much to ask for.

Thank the Spirit for Tahsé'ton. If it wasn't for him, then she felt she really would have fallen into loneliness. The other children were around as well and often played with her whenever she had time, but it was always Tahsé'ton that was by her side. He spoke with her, he played with her, he gave her a shoulder to cry on when the pressure became too much and just generally was there when she needed him. She couldn't ask for a better friend.

And then of course, there was Sulr as well. A plus to her mother being so busy meant that Kanan'tú'lia had the freedom to sneak away from the village without the woman knowing, or if she did know she never brought it up. Often times, Sulr's group wasn't at the oasis, but when they did turn up and he had time, she and him would find a secluded area to speak with one another. He also let her know if he was changing location and if she could, she tended to find him at those places instead of the oasis, but it was usually there.

The things he told her really intrigued her, such as what the city-born culture was like. She learnt of the different continents of Sanghelios, the largest were Kaepra, Qivro, Tolvuus, Vaardma and Yermo, the last being where they were at the moment. Each reigion were governed by a large state lead by a particular Sangheili family clan, which is known as a Family Keep. These Keeps were headed by a Kaidon- to which Kanan'tú'lia figured was similar to a clan-leader- of whom was selected by a council of elders. Each of these Keeps had a wide number of city states under them, ranging from small rural ones to urban cities. Some clans and cities were allowed to develop in isolation, but they did not have the protection given by the Keeps and had to struggle on their own to survive.

He also told her about something called the Covenant, which he was nearing to get into as he was almost fifteen cycles old. To her understanding, it was some sort of massive religious and militaristic cult that consisted of dozens of different alien races, all living under the same banner and worshipping the so called Forerunners. He also told her about those that lead the Covenant, the San'Shyuum, whom Kanan'tú'lia had already heard about. After all, it was they that turned the Sangheili's eyes away from the Spirit and blinded their people with their false prophecies. She never said that to Sulr though, as it was clear he believed in this with all his being and she didn't want to loose his friendship over religion.

As far as she understood it, the Forerunners had once existed in life, creating vast technological contraptions that was left behind for their true believers when they passed from this universe. Every action that was made was judged. If you believed, when either death or something called the Great Journey came, then you were rewarded with Paradise and Godhood. If you didn't believe, then you were damned to the depths of something called the seven hells, or Oblivion. This honestly baffled Kanan'tú'lia, as the concept of Paradise or Oblivion was incredibly foreign to her, since in her culture the souls of the dead return to be one with the Spirit. ** _  
_**

As such, she told him about the Spirit of Sanghelios, about what it meant to her people and their race as a whole. She told him that the Spirit was an entity that was very unlike the Forerunners, as it doesn't mingle with the affairs of mortals nor does it care what life one has lead. It only cares for the balance of life, for the preservation of every being upon their world and governs the souls of creature and Sangheili alike that dies upon the planet. Also, there were the Ancestors. She told him that the Ancestors are the true judges of the living, and it was they that decided whether or not a Sangheili was worthy of their strength and wisdom. However, their interpretations never interfered with the decisions of the Spirit, as every soul was welcomed into the entity's arms no matter what.

It was clear that everything she told him had fascinated him but he didn't fully understand, not that she expected him to. After spending his whole life being indoctrinated to the San'Shyuum's will, it was no wonder the mere thought of the Spirit boggled his mind.

Even still, that wasn't the only things they talked about. He had told her about where he had grown up before he started the war academy of Iruriu- which she found out was actually what she believed was a city for the longest time- which was a small farming state much further north, beyond the Kolaar mountains on the horizon, governed by his father who was the Kaidon. According to his information, it was more akin to a small town than a city but it was ran as tightly, as they had a strong companionship with the Vadam Keep.

As for his father, he explained something Kanan'tú'lia found incredibly strange. He said that he was one of the rare Sangheili children that knew their father's identity, since it had been deemed tradition for a child to have no knowledge of their sire, lest they use their father's status to pull themselves into a higher standing without earning it. However, Sulr had said that he respected his father too much to use him in such a way, vowing that he would earn his own status. In response, Kanan'tú'lia told him that in her clan it didn't matter what an individual's standing was. Every person is an equal and the bonds they have with each other strengthen the clan as a whole. As leader, her mother is only the central balance, ensuring that the stability remains strong.

Even still, everything she found out about him, and he about her, strengthened their slowly budding friendship. They had each begun to enjoy the other's company and constantly looked forward to when they could meet again.

At this very moment early one morning, before the first sun had even risen, she and Sulr were hidden in the shrubbery not too far from the camp, lounging against the trees as he told her about his personal life. He had recently told her more about his family, particularly of his sisters, of which he had four. That was something Kanan'tú'lia couldn't help but feel amazed about, as she was an only child and had no other siblings. The closest she has to siblings are the other children in the village. When she inquired about what his sisters do, he told her that his two eldest had already found mates and have children of their own. His second youngest sister had just begun finishing school and his younger sister is still a child.

" **/** Being an only son is difficult for me, you know. **\** " he told her after finishing. " **/** Being surrounded with four sisters my whole life made me grow up differently than other males. **\** "

" **/** Really? **\** " she questioned, paying acute attention to him. With every visit she made to him, his skill with her language had improved greatly as he very rarely pauses or speaks broken phrases. Of course she herself now had a good grasp of his language, as he had assisted her in learning it over the cycle, but he tended to mostly speak in hers whenever they met up.

He nodded in response to her question. " **/** Yes, as most males can boast that they have brothers, therefore they created unique bonds with them that I never had. Having said that though, my mother has recently birthed another egg, though we are unsure what gender it is yet. **\** "

" **/** How long do you have to wait? **\** "

He shrugged in response. " **/** I'm not sure, as I have not been home in a while, but I think the egg will hatch by the end of this season. And I _'_ m hoping that it is boy, I think it high time I had a brother. **\** " he gazed fully to Kanan'tú'lia, seeing her confused reaction to his words, leaning forward to rest his arms against his thighs with a sigh. " **/** I don't mean that in a bad way. I love every one of my sisters, but growing up around them has made me softer than the adverage male, I fear. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia frowned at that, cocking her head. " **/** What do you mean? There's nothing wrong with a soft hearted male. **\** "

" **/** That may be so, **\** " he informed her as he hung his head. " **/** But if I am to be a warrior of the Covenant, then my softness will be my downfall and I will end up getting myself and others killed. **\** "

To that, Kanan'tú'lia immediately shook her head. " **/** No you won't. **\** " she said firmly, to which he cocked an unbelieving brow at her. Seeing that, she shuffled closer to him and lay a hand on his shoulder. " **/** Sulr, you may believe that your sisters have made you soft, but I don't. In fact, I think that the love you have for your sisters make you stronger. It gives you a reason to fight and gives you something to come back to. **\** "

However, to her dismay, Sulr only sighed again as he lowered his gaze. " **/** That's true and I know that, but it wasn't what I meant. **\** "

" **/** What did you mean then? **\** " she asked.

For the longest time though, Sulr stayed silent. Kanan'tú'lia could see that he was fighting with himself on what to say, clearly telling her that his problems were more deep rooted than she initially realised. Before long though, he shook his head before meeting her eyes again. " **/** Nothing, it doesn't matter. **\** "

" **/** Sulr. **\** " she murmured, showing her concern for him through the sound of his name.

He just shook his head again, raising his palm up to empathise the unimportance of his problem. " **/** No really, it's fine. You don't need me to be placing my problems upon your shoulders Kana, you have enough to deal with out here. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia's mandibles twitched into a smile when he used a shortened version of her name. As they met up with one another early on last cycle, it became obvious that he couldn't pronounce her full name properly, even with his knowledge of her language. In the end, he had spontaniously called her Kana one day and while it surprised her, the name had stuck. Admittedly though she really liked it, despite how strange it was to have a shortened name like a city-born.

She shrugged her shoulders as she replied. " **/** All right, as long as you're sure. But if you want to talk about it, you can talk with me. **\** "

He smiled at her in turn, his blue eyes lighting up with gratefulness. " **/** I'll keep that in mind. **\** " he then glanced out through the shrubbery, seeing that the area had begun to light up as the first sun peaked over the horizon. Inhaling a breath, he pulled himself to his feet as he spoke to her again. " **/** The suns will be up soon, I'd better get back to my tent before the tutors discover my absence. **\** "

" **/** I'd better get back too. **\** " Kanan'tú'lia said as she too rose to her feet. Sulr glanced over to her, giving her a smile. Kanan'tú'lia returned the smile, giving him a wave as she did so. "See you soon." she said in his language almost flawlessly, if it wasn't for her thick accent, before she took off running. She never noticed that Sulr had attempted to stop her, to try and tell her something, but she had already crashed through the brushes and ran out into the tundra. Sulr sighed at this, turning toward the camp and carefully made his way back to his tent, ensuring none of the tutors saw him sneaking around. He felt so bad that he never got the chance to tell her that he probably wouldn't be seeing her again, as the senior's graduation are very soon, which meant he was never coming back here once he graduated as a minor warrior.

He sighed once he was back in his tent, waiting for the tutors to begin the morning roll call, hoping that Kanan'tú'lia would come back tomorrow morning so he could warn her. If not, then he could only hope that she could forgive him.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

As the weeks went on, Kanan'tú'lia constantly looked out for the camp's return, both when she went hunting with her tutors and every few mornings. It wasn't uncommon that the group remains absent for a long while, so the girl wasn't worried at first.

However, as time went on and she arrived at the oasis one day to find the group of boys, she discovered that she couldn't see Sulr around at all. She spotted the young boy he often hung around with, but the one she was truly after was nowhere to be found. It was the same the time after that, and after that and so on.

Eventually the spring season had passed and summer arrived, and Sulr had not turned up again. This meant that he had gone to the Covenant without warning her, which saddened Kanan'tú'lia greatly. He was gone, left her behind just as her father did to her mother and she felt the deep rooted stab of betrayal in her chest. Eventually, she gave up on the idea that he would come back. On that day, she cried in solitude.

As the summer carried on though, Kanan'tú'lia put the boy's sudden disappearance out of her mind and focused on both her training and with the assistance of the clan. The current season of the cycle was by far the hottest, the plains waving in a creative illusion as heat rose from the ground. At this moment, the Sangheili girl was laying flat on an outcropping of rocks in the tundra, her tutor laying beside her as the two spied a herd of keifra gathered around the river a few meters below them.

A gust of wind blew over them, blowing dust and dirt around, though due to how hot it was it was near impossible to feel the air. Kanan'tú'lia could feel the triple suns burning into her back, suddenly glad she had decided on wearing her lighter clothing. She glanced over to her tutor, seeing him scanning the area for any signs of predators with a keen eye. At this time of year, most animals were scrambling to find suitable water sources for themselves. While a few kills from the herd below them would give them the meat they would need to survive a while, they also had to be wary as with the number of herbivores gathered around, there was no telling if there were any predators lurking in the tall grasses as well.

Finally though, Kanan'tú'lia saw her tutor slowly rising and slipping his bow off his back. She pushed herself up also, following his lead. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye as he nocked an arrow. " **/** Focus, Kanan'tú'lia. Be swift, silent and above all, strike true. **\** " he whispered lowly to her.

She nodded as she too notched an arrow on her bow, leaning her weight on her knees as she pulled back the bow string the smallest amount and waited for her tutor to give the word. As the two stayed poised, Kanan'tú'lia mentally calculated the wind direction and strength, being sure to adjust her aim accordingly with every change. She kept her arms supple, her centre strong and her breathing slow and calm as she zeroed her eyes on an animal at the edge of the herd, pulling back the string until her knuckles brushed her cheek.

Finally, her tutor made a distinct clicking noise, similar to the sound a 'sKelln makes when at rest. That was the signal. In an instant, both she and her tutor released their arrows, the wooden projectiles cutting through the air and arching toward their intended targets like birds of prey. It didn't take long before the arrows both struck, burying into the flanks of two keifra, fatally wounding them. At the sound of the animal's cries of pain, the rest of the herd became spooked and took of as one, leaving their herd mates to collapse dead upon the dusty ground.

Once the herd had moved on, Kanan'tú'lia's tutor began to jump down the rocks, the girl close behind and approached their bounties when they reached the ground. Kneeling beside both, the two Sangheili recited a prayer for the animal's departed souls to find their way to the Spirit's side before retreaving their arrows.

The girl's tutor glanced up at her, a look of pride in his expression. " **/** Well done, Kanan'tú'lia, a clean kill. **\** "

Just as she was about to thank her tutor, that was when she spotted something moving in the grasses nearby. Knowing instantly what it was, Kanan'tú'lia cried out to her tutor, to which he instantly sprang to his feet just as a large creature emerged from hiding. It had a leathery pelt, coloured a sandy brown with accents of red and a thick mane. It had a slender but muscular body and long powerful legs ending in wicked claws. It's tail was almost twice it's body length, ending in a flat fin-like appendage. Ancestor's grace, it is a haelek.

Both Kanan'tú'lia and her tutor were on their feet in an instant, the male Sangheili swiftly unsheathing the dagger on his belt as the haelek snarled at them, showcasing wickedly long and sharp canines. It was clear that this predator had been attracted by the deaths of the keifra and had the intention of taking the corpses for itself, as the stance it had indicated that it was challenging them. It wouldn't attack them since Kanan'tú'lia's tutor was here and a single haelek don't tend to attack fully grown adults, but that didn't mean it wouldn't try if made any threatening motions to it. Therefore, the two Sangheili made no aggressive moves and kept eye contact with the beast as it approached.

Her tutor commanded Kanan'tú'lia to back away slowly, to which she obeyed instantly. Even though one haelek wouldn't be that difficult to take down it wasn't the wisest thing to do, as there was no doubt there was more hidden nearby ready to attack them should they be proven as a threat.

The single haelek continued to creep closer until it was hovering over the carcasses, snarling and growling at the two with fake pounces, which made Kanan'tú'lia's hearts jump every time, afraid the animal would attack them anyway. She began to sweat when four more haelek, one of them being bigger than the rest with a thicker mane, and a small number of cubs emerged from the grass, also approaching the fallen keifra.

They both continued to back away, certain that with the distance between them the predators won't charge. Once they managed to find cover behind the rock formation they were mounted on before, Kanan'tú'lia let out a breath of relief. Now that the two of them were out of the line of sight, the predator's began attacking their bounties. It was disheartening to hear the creatures tearing at the meat, growling and snarling at one another as they feasted. Her tutor sighed as well, a deep frown on his face.

Looking up to him, Kanan'tú'lia inquired softly. " **/** What are we to do now master? **\** "

Glancing down at her, he promptly replied. " **/** First off, attempt to put more distance between ourselves and these haelek. We were lucky they did not perceive us as a threat. **\** " to that, Kanan'tú'lia could whole-heartedly agree. Haelek in most scenarios were easy to deal with when alone, but when there was a whole pack of them there was hardly any hope for a lone Sangheili adult, let alone a child. They should really count their blessings that the haelek were more interested in their kills then them. " **/** Having said that, we cannot return to the village empty handed. Let us continue to hunt and hope we come up with something. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia nodded, following close behind her tutor as he began to make his way across the tundra, the sounds of the feasting haelek following their every step.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Sadly it had turned out that the bounty the two of them collected was surprisingly thin. As it was nearing mid-afternoon, Kanan'tú'lia's tutor decided to cut their losses and return to the village. Hopefully, the others would understand why they came back with only a small bounty, or the other hunters had more luck than them.

Upon finding their way back to the cliff pass, the two were surprised to see a small entourage of large transports. They were all made from some sort of purple metal of unknown origin, and possessed mind boggling contraptions within it. Kanan'tú'lia quickly figured out that these transports were of city-born origin, instantly telling her that some city-borns were most definitely in the valley. She groaned internally at this. More than likely, the city-borns were representatives of a higher power, thus they will be seeing her mother. Therefore, she will be asked to leave immediately once she turns up to deposit her weapons. Shaking her head, the girl paid no further mind to the transports and followed her tutor through the pass.

Back in the village, she and her tutor deposited the bodies of their bounty, after which he allowed her the remainder of the day off. Relieved, the youngster immediately headed to the centre of the village.

The activity in the village was quite thin at this present time, since the majority of the hunters and their apprentices were still out in the tundra. The only people Kanan'tú'lia came across was the herders, farm tenders and some children; of whom came running across the main thoroughfare right in front of her. She thankfully stopped in time before any of the children crashed into her as they sprinted past, screaming out in joy while they played whatever game they conducted. The young girl smiled, longing to join them in their game, but first she wanted to get her weapons back home so she wasn't carting them around everywhere. Sighing, she continued on.

It didn't take long before Kanan'tú'lia reached her home, immediately noticing the prescence of two city-borns clad in elaborate metal suits standing close to it. Guards no doubt, which solidified Kanan'tú'lia's theory of the visitors being high authority representatives. Keeping her gaze to the floor so she wouldn't meet the eyes of the large city-born guards as she passed them, she slid her bow further down her back to keep it from bumping the door frame, opening it and bounding inside. She glanced to the middle of the living space, expecting to see her mother, Ke'atuól'ti, tending the flames as she normally was as well as whatever high class city-born was with her.

What she found was indeed her mother at the fireplace but instead of the usual forms of high class men who spoke on behalf of the Elder Council, it was someone she didn't expect at all. Sitting opposite the fire, with brown eyes directed at her due to her sudden entrance, was another Sangheili female. She was a brown skinned woman garbed in a light and tastefully designed lilac robe with a golden trim, the material possessing a variety of emboridery and patterns. She also had an elaborate pointed headress atop her head, decorated with beads and jewels. Kanan'tú'lia immediately recognised her as her mother's good friend and high preistess, Jera Zalum.

Though Jera wasn't alone, as with her were two children. One a very young girl whom had paler skin than Jera, sitting on the preistess' lap with her arms wrapped comfortably round her, dressed in a long pink dress with white trimming that had muted patterns of flowers and plants. Her bright yellow eyes stared at Kanan'tú'lia with open curiosity.

The other was a boy, though calling him a child would be a misnomer. He was in fact quite tall and muscular, indicating that he was definitely a cycle or two older than Kanan'tú'lia. He had light brown skin and was dressed in an uniform Kanan'tú'lia had seen the boy's wearing at the oasis camp, which was a dark blue jumpsuit with simple patterns upon it. He also had thick leather gauntlets and sturdy leather boots to complete the setting.

But what caught her attention the most about this boy was his eyes. They were of a unique colour, the like of which she had never seen before. A ruddy red, like the colour of the desert sands. If the girl was honest with herself- which she tended to be on principle- he was admittedly quite handsome.

However, as she studied him some more, that was when she found that she recognised him. It took her a second to figure out how, but her eyes widened slightly when she remembered that this was the boy that Sulr often hung out with. By the Ancestor's, what a small world. But seeing this boy reminded her about Sulr leaving without warning, which instantly turned her mood sour but was snapped out of it by the sound of her mother's voice.

" **/** Ah, Kanan'tú'lia, you have returned. **\** " she then turned back to Jera with an apologetic smile, transferring to the city-born language as she addressed her, her voice containing only a slither of an accent. "My apologies Jera. I am afraid I did not know when my daughter would return."

Jera only smiled in turn, waving an unconcerned hand. "There is no need to apologise, my friend. This is your home after all." she turned then to Kanan'tú'lia, a wide and friendly smile on her face before she bowed her head. " **/** Pleasure to... witness you again... dear girl.\Did I say that right?" she greeted as she switched awkwardly between the two languages. Kanan'tú'lia smiled in response.

"Very close." she replied in Jera's native tongue, her words clear despite her heavy accent. "But it is also good to see you, high preistess Zalum."

Jera smiled at the girl's polite tone, but waved a hand. "Oh dear girl, there is no need to be so formal, you know you may call me Jera." Kanan'tú'lia's smile widened at that, but still bowed her head to the high preistess respectfully. But it was at that moment Jera's attention was turned to the young girl in her lap, grunting in discomfort as she wriggled around so she could face her. Jera huffed out a breath once the girl faced her. "Oh by the Gods Kida, I do wish you would sit still."

However, Kida completely ignored her mother's annoyed tone, boldly staring her in the face as her eyes alighted with child-like wonder. "Mama," she began, her voice slurring as though she hadn't quite grasped the subtlety of speech yet. "Why does that girl sound funny?"

Jera glared at her young daughter disapprovingly. "Kida!" she scolded. She gave an apologetic look to both Kanan'tú'lia and Ke'atuól'ti. "I am so very sorry."

However, Ke'atuól'ti only smiled. "Oh, it is nothing to be sorry for. I remember my daughter used to be just like yours at that age." her eyes grew distant, darting to the side and she smiled as if she was recalling an amusing memory. She was snapped from her thoughts as Jera plucked her daughter from her lap, setting her on her feet as she spoke again.

"In any case, perhaps we should continue in private?" at Ke'atuól'ti's nod, Jera turned to the boy standing at attention by her side. Kanan'tú'lia had found it odd how he hadn't spoken a word since she came in. Jera placed her hand on the boy's arm, guiding it around the young girl's shoulders. "Zorin, would you be a dear and take your sister out to play? I am certain she is eager to play with the other children." she glanced down at Kida, grinning as the young girl bounced up and down, squealing out in excitement at the prospect of making new friends. Zorin nodded his head, beginning to guide his sister to the exit where Kanan'tú'lia still stood. "Oh, and Zorin?" he paused when his mother called him back, turning his gaze to look at her. Jera gave him a stern look as she continued. "Be sure to take care of your sister."

"Yes mother." he replied, his still high voice cracking slightly despite his best effort to cover it. Kanan'tú'lia managed to hide her grin in time when he turned back, however her amusement was short lived when her mother addressed her.

" **/** Kanan'tú'lia, why don't you join them? Show them around the village and introduce them to your friends, hmm? **\** "

Repressing a groan Kanan'tú'lia nodded, yet again feeling as though her mother was pushing her away. At this point though, Kanan'tú'lia found that she could hardly care. " **/** All right mother. **\** " she sighed.

Both Ke'atuól'ti and Jera smiled as they watched their children exit the hut. Once the door closed behind them, they turned their attention back to each other. "Your Zorin has grown so much since I last saw him." Ke'atuól'ti commented as the other woman smiled.

"Yes, he has." she replied, a distant look in her brown eyes. "He has transformed into a very respectful young man since he began at the academy. Why, I remember when he was Kida's age, following his brother around like a lost doarmir pup and now I barely recognise him. He has grown up so much, and I could not be more proud."

Ke'atuól'ti smiled as well. Leaning forward, she folded her hands together. "And how is your eldest?"

Jera's eyes became downcast at that. "Last I heard from him was only the previous week. He is in the Covenant now, has been for the last three cycles. Though what I have heard is good; he has already made it to Special Operations." Pride was very evident in the preistess' tone and expression. "To think: my boy a swordsman. He certainly contains his father's genes."

"That is good news indeed." Ke'atuól'ti said, though her mind begun to wonder, beginning to hope for a way to communicate with _her_ beloved, as he had still had yet to return. Shaking those melancholic thoughts from her mind, Ke'atuól'ti continued on. "But enough about that. Tell me more of these Forerunners of yours, Jera."

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Outside, the three children paced away from the hut, passing by the guards before stopping. Standing a few feet from the two city-born children, Kanan'tú'lia shuffled her feet awkwardly, scuffing the toe of her boots on the dusty ground. Zorin stood ram rod straight, but still held an obvious air of awkwardness about him as well. Good to know that she wasn't alone in that aspect. Glancing at him, she clenched her mandibles as she fought for what to say to him and hoped that what she did say wouldn't offend him.

After a moments pause, she began awkwardly. "Erm... your name is Zooren, yes?"

She spied his mandibles twitch and eyes widen, no doubt in surprise that she knew his language, but it soon turned to annoyance. "Zorin." he corrected with an undertone of irritation. The little girl at his side bounced slightly, attempting to catch Kanan'tú'lia's attention. She darted her emerald eyes to her instead, if only to avoid the discomfort she felt in the boy's presence.

"I'm Kida!" she loudly announced and Kanan'tú'lia couldn't help but smile.

"Hello Kida." she replied, bending at the waist so she was eye level with the child, pointing to her own chest. "I'm Kanan'tú'lia."

The girl's brows furrowed at that, mumbling quietly as she attempted to pronounce the older girl's name to little success. It was actually quite cute watching her face contort in concentration, but the moment was ruined by a huff from Zorin. " _That_ is your name?" he questioned, his tone swathed in amusement. "What a ridiculously long name."

Kanan'tú'lia frowned. How dare he make fun of her name, she was very proud of it! It meant _Swift Rising Sun_ which indicated to her bright personality, adventurous attitude, athleticism and enthusiasm. It suited her well, thank you very much and she wasn't about to have some stuffy nosed city-born tell her otherwise.

"That right?" she retorted, standing at her full height- which had drastically increased the past cycle, but still not quite reaching his level. She glared defiantly into his desert eyes, scrambling for a suitable retort as she continued awkwardly. "Well, your name is too short!" she empathised that by holding her primary thumb and forefinger of her left hand a little ways from each other. Well that wasn't very elegant, but she was too irritated to care at the moment.

Again, Zorin merely huffed. "Invigorating." he deadpanned. Kanan'tú'lia frowned, quickly deciding that she didn't like his attitude. If this was indeed the boy who was friends with Sulr, how in the world did that happen? Sulr's personality was the complete opposite of Zorin's, there was no way this boy was the same person who was friends with such an easy going person. As she pondered this, Zorin crossed his arms and continued to speak before she had the chance to. "My point is however, could it be at all possible for your name to be shortened? For my sister's benefit, of course."

Yes, definitely the opposite of Sulr. The blue eyed boy had never used such big words around her, or delivered them in such a patronising tone. Mandibles vibrating, Kanan'tú'lia sighed as she decided to use the shortened version of her name that Sulr had adopted for her. It reminded her of the boy too much and it hurt when she remembered his sudden disappearance, but it was the only thing she could think of. "Kana."

That seemed to satisfy him and Kida, as the little girl repeated the shortened name with no problem. The older girl smiled, but inwardly she sighed. City-borns and their small names, honestly.

She didn't ponder on that thought for long though, as Zorin placed a hand on his sister's shoulder, beginning to herd her further into the village. "Now that is settled," he said, glancing back at Kanan'tú'lia. "Care to assist me in finding Kida entertainment?"

Kanan'tú'lia simply nodded her head, not wishing to extend this charade any longer than was needed, so she marched ahead of him, inclining her head as she passed. "Come, follow me."

With the two city-borns on her heels, Kanan'tú'lia retraced her steps back through the main thoroughfare. It didn't take long to find the group of children that almost ran into her earlier, as they were currently playing close to the animal pens. As they got closer, Kanan'tú'lia was surprised to see Tahsé'ton among them. He must have just recently come back as well, since he too still wore his weapons.

With a bright smile- and completely forgetting about the two following her- Kanan'tú'lia ran to her friend. " **/** Tahsé'ton! **\** " she called. He whirled around from the child he was facing, his expression one of confusion for a split second but it didn't take long to turn to one of joy.

" **/** Kanan'tú'lia! You're back too! **\** " he yelled as she skidded to a stop in front of him. " **/** I didn't think you'd be back so soon. **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia shrugged at that. " **/** Our bounty was a bit thin today. A pack of haelek stole our kills. **\** "

Tahsé'ton's brows rose at that, a look on concern emerging in his expression as he looked her over. " **/** By the Spirit, you're not hurt at all are you? **\** "

Smiling at her friend's concern, Kanan'tú'lia shook her head. " **/** No, I'm fine. They were more interested in the kills than us thankfully. **\** "

Tahsé'ton just nodded in reply, relief crossing his face, until he spotted the two city-born's integrate themselves beside them. He blinked at them before turning his gaze back to his friend. " **/** Kanan'tú'lia, who are they? City-borns? **\** "

Glancing briefly at the two, Kanan'tú'lia clenched her mandibles as she replied to Tahsé'ton. " **/** Yes, mother asked me to show them around. I brought them here so the little girl can play. **\** " Tahsé'ton nodded in understanding, until Zorin spoke up.

"I am beginning to think that you are being rude on purpose." he snapped at Kanan'tú'lia. Tahsé'ton frowned at that, as he understood the boy but wasn't as verse in the language as Kanan'tú'lia. She had taught him the language over the cycle as she learnt, but he wasn't quite at the same level as his friend. Kanan'tú'lia on the other hand bristled at him, letting out an irritated huff. Looking back to Tahsé'ton, she briefly continued on.

" **/** And I don't like him. **\** " she looked back to Zorin, placing a hand on her hip. "Well, forgive me for saying hello to my friend."

Zorin blinked a couple of times at her tone, though he soon narrowed his eyes as he became annoyed with her. He sighed, rubbing his brow with his primary thumb and finger of his free hand. "By the Gods." he groaned though it turned into a grunt when his sister pulled down on his arm, demanding his attention.

"Zowin! Zowin!" she yelled in a bid to be noticed by him. When his eyes met hers, she leant down further on his arm, forcing him to bend down awkwardly as she pouted. "I wanna play!" she whined.

Zorin hissed in displeasure at the young girl's tone, while catching the eyes of the four other children staring at them incomprehensibly. He looked to Kanan'tú'lia. "Could you tell these children that my sister wishes to play with them?" he asked, though the girl could hear the underlying anger. Thinking it best not to start a confrontation, she obliged to his request. Stepping up in front of the pack of children nearby, Kanan'tú'lia bent down to their level.

" **/** Hey there. **\** " she began, catching the eyes of all the youngsters. " **/** That little girl over there wants to play with you. Is it okay if she does? **\** "

The expressions of the majority ranged from confusion to excitement, though they were obviously eager to make a friend out of a city-born. Therefore, they all nodded, one speaking to her as they did so. " **/** Yep, she can play. We're playing hide and hunt! **\** " Kanan'tú'lia smiled at that, as she enjoys playing that game as well. Straightening up, she turned back to Kida, nodding her head.

"They're playing hide and hunt." she announced, pointing to her and then the other children. "Do you want to play?"

With an excited squeal, Kida released her brother's hand and joined the pack of children, all of them darting off as one. Kanan'tú'lia and Tahsé'ton smiled at one another, watching Zorin pursue them before following him.

The eight eventually ran out of the village gates, running to a collection of fallen rocks and boulders a little ways away, the three eldest standing back and watched as the children gathered together to decide who will be the hunter. As they did so, Tahsé'ton turned to Kanan'tú'lia, gesturing to the new-comer in front of them. " **/** Did he tell you his name at least? **\** " he asked.

Kanan'tú'lia nodded in reply, " **/** He did. It's Zorin. **\** " the boy in question whipped his gaze to them, as his name was the only thing he understood. He frowned again and Kanan'tú'lia was becoming convinced that expression was his natural one.

"Do not speak of me as if I am not here." he snapped.

She clicked her mandibles as a shrug, though Tahsé'ton gave the city-born boy a sheepish look. "Sorry," he told him as he gestured to himself. "Not very good with... language."

"Of course." Zorin sighed with a roll of his eyes. "But at least have the common curtsey to not speak of me without my knowledge."

Kanan'tú'lia crossed her arms at that, but nodded anyway. With that settled, she quickly moved the topic on as she gestured to an awkward Tahsé'ton beside her. "If you wish to know, my friend is Tahsé'ton." she informed. "He only wanted to know your name, so there was no need to snap at us."

If Zorin acknowledged that, he didn't show it. Instead, he returned his attention to the scattering children, discovering his sister running behind a dense bush. He kept a sharp eye on it, looking out for danger like a seasoned hunter. Kanan'tú'lia could practically see the cogs in his head turning, easily seeing a well trained eye when she saw one. That was a given though, since he is a part of the academy that Sulr was in.

Stepping forward so she could look him in the eye, she spoke up to him again. "You are part of the academy, aren't you?"

Zorin peaked back at her, blinking in surprise at her. "Pardon?"

"You're in the academy," she clarified. "The one in the forest. Training to be in the Covenant, yes?"

Zorin's brows furrowed, clearly bemused about her statement. "How did you-" he began, though he soon shook his head and redirected his gaze back to the bush his sister still hid behind. "Never mind. But as you rightly said, yes I am training to become a warrior to join the mighty Covenant's ranks."

Kanan'tú'lia stared at him blankly. Well, she supposed it was a good thing that he was rather enthusiastic about it, but she still couldn't stand the thought that the Covenant was in the control of the blasted San'Shyuum. She really wished she could do something to remove the veil that covered their people's eyes, but she knew that would get her nowhere. She was only one person after all, and taking that route would be the direct way of getting herself killed. Therefore, the girl decided it was wise to keep her mouth shut. Her impression of Zorin told her that if she tried to argue the point with him, it would become fairly heated very fast.

Instead, she just nodded. "Well, I hope you are able to do so."

"What is that suppose to mean?" Zorin snapped, more than a little irritated at her words.

"Oh nothing, I only hope that you will be adequately trained for whatever you may face."

Tahsé'ton snapped his gaze to Kanan'tú'lia, an expression of shock on his face. " **/** Kanan'tú'lia, what are you doing? **\** " he whispered to her in their language, seeing the city-born boy seethe at her words.

"Excuse me!?" he yelled, turning fully toward her as he straightened to his full height, as though he was attempting to intimidate her. "How dare you suggest such a thing!"

"Well, you cannot expect that any hand to hand skill you may have learnt will be sufficent." she retailated in a matter of fact tone. "Brawn alone will not guarantee survival."

Zorin crossed his arms at that, his scowl deepening. "And what would you possibly know of that, you are but a mere female."

"I don't see what difference that makes."

"No?" he cocked a brow at that, looking as though he was to give her the schooling of her life. "The simle fact is that no woman has ever been a warrior, they are unfit to be so. A woman is a carer, a breeder, priests, artisans and shopkeepers, nothing more."

Kanan'tú'lia may not know much about the city-born culture, as all she knew was what Sulr had taught her, but she immediately felt offended at his words. It was down right insulting that he dismissed females into such categories with no regard, as a woman has just as much right to choose whatever they wished to do as much as a male does. Males ad females in the tribe were all equals and were free to make whatever choice they wished because if such conflict existed among them, then the stability of the clan would crumble and they could not survive. It's true that their lives were not as hard as the other Wonderers, but that didn't mean that it was easy to live here. Every person had to pull their own weight and that included the women.

Therefore, she straightened to her full height, her irrate mood evident as she scowled at the city-born. At her side, she noticed that Tahsé'ton was also frowning at the older boy, clearly angry that someone was daring to insult not only her, but women in general. Her friend didn't interfere though, allowing her to deal with the city-born herself, as he knew she was more than capable of fighting her own battles. "How dare you, you absolute cretin!" she growled. "Females have as much right to be hunters if they so wish! I am a hunter, and I can more than handle myself!"

Zorin let out a unamused scoff at that. "You? A hunter? Ha, do not make me laugh."

"It is true!" she defended, crossing her arms as her glare intensified. "And I will prove it too."

"That right?" Zorin questioned, a look of obvious disbelief on his face but he still gestured his hand around as though he was giving her leave to act. "Then please, humour me. Take me outside this valley and show me otherwise."

Kanan'tú'lia blinked at that, shocked at his words. Surely he was not suggesting such a thing, they were still too young to hunt outside the valley on their own. Not to mention there was the potential of running into predators out there, and Kanan'tú'lia wasn't ready to fend off such threats.

"You not serious?" Tahsé'ton told him, anxiety clear in his tone as he was as apprehensive about this suggestion as Kanan'tú'lia was. "We cannot go out valley, not without adult."

Zorin cocked a brow, leaning down and staring them both in the eye with a smug look. "What is the matter?" he asked them with a disgusting smirk that looked wrong on his handsome face. "Are you cowards?"

To that Kanan'tú'lia reared back, ahgast at his statement. Immediately after though her own sense of pride flared up, appalled that he would suggest that her, of all people, is a coward. She scowled yet again. He had no idea of the things she had to deal with daily, no idea how low the threat of death was hanging over her head every time she stepped through the cliff-side pass and into the tundra. Yes, she had her tutors to look out for her well being, but it was expected of her to learn to fend for herself if she was to go out hunting on her own one day.

So no, she was not a coward, but there was no way of proving that to Zorin without following his demands. Kanan'tú'lia sighed. It went against every instinct that was screaming at her to let this go, but she felt she had no other choice. She is going to prove herself and put this smug city-born in his place.

"Fine." she relented after a few seconds of glaring the older boy down. She pushed past him then, barging her shoulder into his as she made her way toward the pass. "Follow close behind city boy, you would not wish to become lost."

Startled by what Kanan'tú'lia had just said, Tahsé'ton gaped after them as they both marched off. He ran to catch up with the two of them, grabbing his friend's arm to stop her in her tracks. " **/** Kanan'tú'lia, what are you doing? You know we can't go outside the valley without an adult. **\** "

Sighing yet again, Kanan'tú'lia looked Tahsé'ton in the eye as she replied. " **/** Yes, I know. But I refuse to be labled as a coward, and I will prove him wrong. **\** "

" **/** Kanan'tú'lia, **\** " Tahsé'ton interjected with a shake of his head. " **/** You have nothing to prove. You're a great hunter and you have no need of proving that to this city-born. **\** "

It was at that moment that said city-born spoke up, his tone just as impatient as his expression. "If you are both quite finished conversing, then shall we move along? If you are going to prove me wrong, you are doing a poor job of it."

Once again, Kanan'tú'lia scowled, her tone becoming cold. " **/** I want to put him in his place, Tahsé'ton and I will. **\** " with that she wrenched her arm out of his hold, continuing her trek toward the cliff pass, Zorin following close behind. Tahsé'ton stared after them, his eyes wide with both shock and fear of what could happen to them out there. He gritted his mandibles as he glanced back toward the village, debating with himself if he should run back and tell an adult about what was happening. Glancing back to the retreating backs of the other two youths though, he knew that telling an adult would get Kanan'tú'lia into trouble, and she had enough of a rocky relationship with her mother as it was.

Shaking his head, and not believing he was actually doing this, the boy ran after them, being sure to draw his bow just in case.

Meanwhile as the three left, Kida watched them stomp off from where she was hidden in the bushes. She had no idea what was going on but when their voices became raised, she knew it wasn't anything good. Not to mention that Kana looked really angry. The little girl hated it when people got angry. Oh she hoped Zorin didn't make her angry, he had a habit of doing that. She didn't want to loose her new friend now, not when she just met her. Kida really liked Kana after all, she was nice even if her voice sounded funny to her.

Therefore, the little girl decided to leave her hiding place and abandon the children she was playing with, running toward the pass with the intention of finding the older three. Hopefully she'll be able to catch up and get Zorin to apologise to Kana before she ends up losing her friendship.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Meanwhile, the two boys and girl had travelled a little ways from the cliff pass into the tundra, the two Wonderers having their bows drawn in case of any danger that may be nearby. Tahsé'ton looked around nervously, expecting a predator to burst out of the tall grasses nearby at any moment. Kanan'tú'lia was keeping an eye on what was around her as well and Zorin stayed close to them, his hand resting on a weapon he had sheathed on his belt. Each of the children were silent, even the city-born boy. Zorin may have made the claim that Kanan'tú'lia was unfit to properly hunt but that didn't mean he would compromise her, as that wouldn't be very honourable of him and he held honour in high esteem.

Finally, after what felt like an age following the native girl, it seemed she had found something since she was now beginning to slow her movement and lower her posture. Both Zorin and Tahsé'ton stopped also, the darker toned boy forcing the other lower to the ground too. They watched as Kanan'tú'lia lowered herself down even further, her eyes staring unblinking ahead. Standing out against the wide open expanse of the dusty plains was a single wild colo, it's long neck bent forward as it's flexible lips grasped at browning leaves of a bush, pulling them into it's mouth. It's posture was completely lax, signifying that it didn't know the three were there.

Kanan'tú'lia narrowed her eyes, resting her arrow against the bow-shaft. Balancing herself carefully while still maintaining her crouch, she grasped the bow string and the arrow and pulled it back slowly. With her knuckles brushing her cheek, Kanan'tú'lia made tiny adjustments to her aim as she inhaled through her nose. The scent of the animal invaded her nasal senses as the wind blew in her direction, along with another. One that made her pause. Now on alert she instantly stilled, darting her eyes from side to side as her senses picked up a scent that caused alarm bells to go off in her mind.

Oh no.

In the next moment, she quickly flatterned herself on the dusty ground as the tall grasses nearby suddenly burst open, an almightly roar sounding out as the colo's head snapped up before a cry of alarm escaped it. Behind her, both Tahsé'ton and Zorin dove down on their stomachs too, as a large beast appeared from seemingly nowhere and sprung upon the colo as it attempted to flee. Razor sharp claws dug into it's flesh and large canines found it's way to the creature's neck as it forced it to the floor.

Keeping herself low, Kanan'tú'lia slightly raised her head to get a better look at the predator. Her eyes widened in panic, as the form of a large haelek met her vision. With how the mane was both thick and grew down the majority of it's body, this told the girl that this haelek was a male. An alpha male to be specific, but why was an alpha out here hunting on it's own? He must have been outcasted from his pack by another male, his ribs could be seen even from where she was laying, as that was the only conculsion she could come to.

Willing herself not to panic, as both a large and starving male haelek was a considerably big threat, and he would not give a second thought of attacking them. Kanan'tú'lia slowly turned her head to see the boys, noticing both of them laying in a prone position on the ground not too far from her. Both had a look of fear, though Zorin's was more controlled. Glancing back at the haelek, her mind raced as the creature began to feast on his quarry. She knew something like this would happen, but she had no idea on what to do. Every time she's encountered one of these, she's always had an adult with her and they dealt with it while telling her to run.

Maybe that's what she should do: hopefully with the animal distracted with his meal, he won't pay them any mind so long as they kept quiet and not draw attention to themselves. So maybe she should return to Zorin and Tahsé'ton, slowly back away and get back to the pass.

On that thought, she decided not to waste any time. Keeping her movement slow, she rose to her hands and knees, beginning to crawl backwards while keeping her eyes on the beast, her bow and arrow still grasped in a single white knuckled fist. Her hearts hammered in her chest and increased their pace whenever the haelek rose his head, though she relaxed when he continued eating.

Finally, after several heart stopping moments, Kanan'tú'lia made it to the boys, both of whom were completely still. Poor Tahsé'ton was stricken with panic, his form shaking, his breath quick but stifled and bow gripped in a wite knuckled fist. To his credit Zorin retained control of himself, but the girl could plainly see the panic in his eyes as well. This would probably teach Zorin not to take the dangers of the plains so lightly next time. Refraining herself from boasting to the city-born that she was right, Kanan'tú'lia placed a comforting hand on Tahsé'ton's shoulder whilst keeping the haelek in her peripherals.

" **/** Tahsé'ton, remember what our tutors tell us. We must stay calm. **\** " she whispered to him, before she swiftly converted to Zorin's language. "We must be silent and quick. Keep yourselves low, try to get back to the pass without drawing it's attention."

It was clear that Zorin wasn't about to argue with her, as not even he was relishing the thought of facing a haelek should it spot them. He nodded in response of her advice. "Then let us be swift." he whispered back. The three of them rose up to their feet but stayed as low to the ground as they could, beginning a slow retreat in the direction they just came from while keeping their eyes on the predator warily. Their entire bodies were tense, ready to spring up and run at a moments notice.

So far, so good. They managed to gain a fair distance from the creature and the sanctuary of the cliff pass was within view. A few more feet and they can get up and run for the cave without drawing the haelek's eye. However, that didn't go exactly to plan.

"ZOWIN!"

The three younglings froze, panic blooming through them when they noticed the haelek snap his head up and toward the shrill voice. Zorin turned, seeing his younger sister not too far from them, glancing around in search for him. Looking back to the haelek the creature had left his meal, also having spotted the young Sangheili girl.

"No." he breathed in distress. Without thinking of the consequences, his only thought being his sister's safety, Zorin jumped up and began to sprint toward her. "KIDA, RUN!" Kida snapped around upon hearing her brother's cry, oblivious to the danger not too far from them. However Zorin's shout seemed to set it off, as the next thing they knew the haelek charged for her.

It didn't take long for the girl to see the reason for her brother's distress and upon spotting the large creature, she froze in horror and let out a loud ear shattering scream. Zorin made a snap decision then, changing his direction to intercept the predator while yanking out the dagger he kept at his hip.

Tahsé'ton and Kanan'tú'lia jumped up as well, the girl aiming her arrow in a desperate bid to help the two. Tahsé'ton meanwhile, began running for the pass as fast as his legs could carry him. Before she could get a shot off, Zorin pounced upon the haelek's back, fisting the mane and stabbing his weapon in the flesh, pulling his weight to one side. The sudden pain surprised the charging creature and unable to compensate for the boy throwing his wieght around, he crashed down on his side, throwing Zorin off as well.

The boy rolled to prevent injury, though a few loose stones jabbed painfully into his sides as he went. With him out the way, Kanan'tú'lia fired her arrow. The projectile embedded into the haelek's shoulder, spewing his blood out the puncture and causing him to roar in pain. Aside from that, it did little else as he rose from the ground and focused his attention on Zorin.

With a snarl that bore it's sharp teeth, the beast sprung upon the recovering boy, who in turn scrambled into a hasty backward roll. Kicking off the tundra floor once he righted himself, Zorin attempted to bound away from the dangerous claws that swiped for him, but he was too slow. The claws made contact, tearing through his suit and side like a knife through water. He let out a howl, his dagger falling from his hand.

Kanan'tú'lia loaded another arrow while Kida continued to scream, the little girl still rooted to the spot in fear. As the native girl pulled back her bow string, she saw the haelek swipe once more for Zorin, catching him in his face. Indigo blood flew as her arrow found home in the beast's side, the boy's scream loud enough to echo around the empty air, disturbing the avians that had taken residence in a nearby tree. The haelek groaned and stumbled when her arrow hit while Zorin crumpled to the ground, the left side of his upper mouth completely ripped off.

Kida's scream increased in frequency upon seeing her brother fall, catching the attention of the haelek. Leaving the boy to bleed, the beast charged the young girl again.

Shock overcame Kanan'tú'lia's conscience when the haelek pounced upon Kida, effortlessly knocking the girl down and sinking his teeth into her abdomen. Kida screamed louder in fear and pain, tears cascading from her eyes as Kanan'tú'lia acted. Throwing down her bow, she sprinted directly at the beast, drawing her dagger in her left hand. Letting out a scream of her own she jumped upon his back and in one fluid motion, stabbed the bone dagger directly for the haelek's throat.

The haelek released the young Sangheili and roared in pain, attempting to buck the other off his back, but due to Kanan'tú'lia's tight hold in his mane and his weakened body, he did not succeed at throwing her off. The girl continued to blindly stab the creature again and again, blood continuously flying from every puncture she put in his flesh. By the time she realised the haelek had fallen, her hands, arms and the majority of her front was covered in violet blood.

Gracelessly falling off the now dead creature, Kanan'tú'lia dropped her dagger as tears fell from her eyes. Zorin was still conscious, sounds of pain escaping him as he covered the left side of his face, desperately trying to stop the bleeding. Kida, on the other hand, wasn't moving.

Adrenaline still coursing through her system, Kanan'tú'lia bounded to her feet and scrambled to the girl's side. She pressed her hands down on the puncture wounds in her sides, relieved to see the tell tale shine of Kida's yellow eyes and feeling her small body shaking. That wasn't a good sign.

It was at that point that, through the haze of her own blood rushing in her ears, Kanan'tú'lia heard alarmed shouts. Glancing up, she spotted several adults running toward them, each of them hunters. Leading them was Tahsé'ton. He had gone for help, but he may have been too late.

Her chest painfully tight, tears falling continuously from her eyes, she kept the pressure on Kida's wounds, the girl's pink dress stained with her own blood and the blood of the haelek, as two of the hunters knelt down beside her, the last seeing to Zorin.

" **/** Kanan'tú'lia, let go. We have to get her back to the village, she will not last otherwise. **\** " she didn't want to let go, she couldn't. Her muscles had locked, her body shaking unconsciously. She saw a pair of large dark hands grip her wrists, gently but firmly coaxing her to let go. " **/** Let go, Kanan'tú'lia, let go. **\** "

Finally, she let go but the moment she was no longer in contact with the young Sangheili's side she snapped her arms around herself, little cries and whimpers escaping her mouth. The second she was released, Kida was immediately swept up by a female hunter and she sprinted for the village with the suffering girl in her arms. Kanan'tú'lia herself felt arms wrap around her as she continued to shake, a hand pushing her head into a chest as she was rocked back and forth.

As she too was scooped up into the hunter's arms, she spotted the last one support Zorin, who was stubbornly attempting to stand without assistance to no avail. Eventually, his legs gave out under him and the hunter swept him up into his arms too. The man carrying her spoke as they began to move. " **/** Tahsé'ton, run to the village and inform the clan-leader of what happened. **\** "

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Ke'atuól'ti and Jera burst into the shaman's hut, being greeted with the sight of the elder woman kneeling over the prone body of Kida, Zorin leaning against the wall by her side with Ts'vaaní rubbing a salve over his wounds, and Kanan'tú'lia laying on her side with her arms wrapped round herself. Seeing her son and daughter- sans her dress- with blood covering them, the priestess let out a cry of distress, dashing further in and dropping to Kida's side.

Ke'atuól'ti stared at the gruesome display with shock and concern. Bringing a hand to her mouth to display her feelings, she glanced at the wise woman. " **/** Shaman, is she... **\** "

"She will live." the old woman said calmly, speaking the language of the city-born's for their benefit. "However, she is in shock. I have done what I can for her wounds but she will be permanently scarred." she glanced at the boy in the corner. "He too shall be fine. He heals quickly."

Jera placed a hand on her daughter's head, her brown eyes leaking tears of sadness and relief. She then glanced up at Zorin. "Zorin..." she breathed.

"Mother..." he said back quietly, hanging his head in shame. "I did not mean... Please forgive me."

"How could you have let this happen!?" she yelled, her voice hysterical, to which to boy shrank back.

Ke'atuól'ti meanwhile turned to her own daughter, whom had just begun to sit up. Seeing her covered in blood, the clan-leader almost panicked, but it soon became clear that this was not the girl's own blood. Gazing into her deep emerald orbs, Ke'atuól'ti demanded. " **/** What happened? **\** "

Kanan'tú'lia tensed upon hearing her mother's voice, her tear streaked face turning down to her lap. She begun to shake again when her blood soaked hands filled her vision, feeling very vulnerable under the woman's gaze. Before she could speak a word however, Zorin beat her to it.

"It was _her_ doing!" he hissed, causing Kanan'tú'lia to snap her head up at him. "She is responsible for all of this!"

Shocked at his accusation Kanan'tú'lia froze completely, unable to protest his words. Jera and Ke'atuól'ti glanced between the two children before finally settling on the accused girl. "Is this true?" Ke'atuól'ti whispered in the city language, an undertone of anger clear in her voice.

Trapped under the intense caramel gaze, Kanan'tú'lia visibly shrank, attempting to make herself as small as possible. New tears gathering in the corner of her eyes as she shook her head. "No!" she protested, her voice cracking between sobs. "I didn't want to go out the valley, he made me!"

Ke'atuól'ti's eyes hardened as she stood above her daughter, her hands curling into fists. "Why did you go out of the valley?" she snarled.

Wincing from the heated tone, Kanan'tú'lia sobbed louder, her tears becoming thicker. "I...I..." she stuttered, withering under her mother's eyes as she stared into them, desperate to make her understand. "I don't know! I didn't know the haelek would be there! I didn't want any of this to happen!" she glanced then at Zorin and Jera, hiccuping between loud cries. "Please, please you have to understand, it wasn't my fault."

Zorin scowled at that, pure hatred igniting in his desert eyes. "Your words mean nothing! My sister is eternally scarred because of you!" he roared. Kanan'tú'lia flinched, feeling as small as an insect under his glare. She wanted to protest, to scream out that it was his fault in the first place, but she knew he was right. _She_ allowed her pride to get the better of her, _she_ should have known better than to raise to his bait. Therefore, _she_ is responsible for their injuries. She covered her face in an attempt to block out the accusing glares as she cried louder.

Unable to take the pressure much longer, Kanan'tú'lia jumped up to her feet in a single move and sprinted out the door, paying no heed to the commands to return.

She ran and ran, not even knowing where she was going. By the time she finally collapsed from exhaustion, Kanan'tú'lia found herself in the small grove that lead out to the plains. On her hands and knees, the girl continued to cry, her head pounding due to the intensity of her tears. She collapsed onto her side, hugging her arms around herself.

Kanan'tú'lia cried and cried until her throat was sore and her eyes dried, refusing to give more tears. Shaking with fatigue, she rolled back onto her hands and knees, her head hanging between her arms. She heaved, feeling bile crawl up her throat, but she forced it back down as she took deep laboured breaths.

Opening her eyes, she found that she was kneeling above the pool, the calming red waters rippling gently as the waterfall tumbled into it. Kanan'tú'lia gazed at her own reflection, seeing her torso, arms and lower face covered with dried indigo blood. She looked into her own glassy emerald eyes, feeling ashamed of what she was seeing. Her breaths quickened, her form shaking as the tears she didn't realise she still had began to blur her vision again. But that wasn't enough.

With a yell of rage mixed with shame, Kanan'tú'lia rose her fists and slammed them down in the water, completely destroying her reflection as the liquid violently sloshed. She continued to figuratively beat herself, taking her anger out on the water. It wasn't until her shoulders felt sore that she stopped, throwing herself away from the pool lest she see herself again.

Now soaking wet from her tantrum, Kanan'tú'lia stood from the rocky ground, feeling the disturbed blood rolling down her arms and dropping to the floor. Raising her arms, she winced at the sight. She can't return to the village like this.

Sighing, she removed the belt and the sash under it from around her waist before taking off her tunic, turning back to the pool afterward. Making an effort to avoid looking at herself, she dropped the cloth into the water. As the tunic soaked up the liquid, it began to sink as she removed her boots and trousers, dropping them in as well. She stood there for just a moment, as naked as the day she hatched, before plunging feet first into the pool.

Submerging herself for a second, she resurfaced with a gasp, running her hands over her head to rid herself of the caked on blood. After that, Kanan'tú'lia obsessively scrubbed her body until all the blood was off, the purple clouding into indistinguishable patterns in the pool. Diving back under, she grabbed her clothes and began to wash them to the best of her ability. She knew that she would never get all of it out, as the cloth was already stained, but she tried anyway.

Her motions became haphazard soon enough, as she just couldn't get the image of Kida out of her head. Her chest became tight once more, a single keen rumbled up her throat despite her efforts to stifle it.

Accepting the fact that her clothes would not get any cleaner, Kanan'tú'lia threw them out of the pool before climbing out herself. She spread them over some rocks to dry out and once that was done she just sat down, wrapping her arms around her knees. She shivered as the air hit her wet body, but she didn't care. Let herself become cold, it's not like it matters anymore.

Huddled up like a fetus Kanan'tú'lia continued weeping, already feeling like her world had just crashed down upon her. She became louder as she cupped her hands over her skull, pushing her head further between her legs until her joints began to hurt.

However, through the sound of her cries, she heard a voice. " **/** Kanan'tú'lia? **\** "

Snapping her head up, Kanan'tú'lia spotted Tahsé'ton standing a few feet from where she sat. As he looked at her, she spotted a light blush across his cheeks at her nakedness, his eyes blinking rapidly as he attempted to keep them fixed on her face. She would have laughed at the sight if she wasn't so miserable.

Clenching her mandibles together so hard that they hurt, Kanan'tú'lia ducked her head back between her legs. " **/** Go away. **\** " she whimpered pathetically, clearly showing the boy that she didn't really want to be alone.

She heard his footsteps coming closer to her, but that didn't prepare her for the the cloth he wrapped over her shoulders. Jumping in surprise, she looked up once more, seeing him without his tunic as it was now wrapped round her. " **/** What are you doing? **\** " she demanded.

" **/** You'll catch your death of a cold if you are not wrapped up. **\** " he simply replied. " **/** What is the matter with you, Kanan'tú'lia? You're not usually this extreme when you make a mistake. **\** "

She let out a bitter laugh at that. " **/** Mistake? This was no simple mistake, Tahsé'ton! I almost got them killed! They are scarred because of me! **\** "

" **/** Scarred, yes, but alive. **\** " he reminded her. " **/** If you weren't there, then they would have died. **\** "

" **/** Well try telling that to my mother. **\** " she said bitterly, hugging Tahsé'ton's tunic further around herself. " **/** I saw that look in her eyes. As far as she's concerned, I have lost my honour because of my own pride. Now everyone will hate me for what I've done. **\** " her sobs returned once more though she tried to stifle them, curling into herself to hide her shame from him.

However, she let out a gasp of surprise when he wrapped his arms around her, heedless of her still damp skin, and forced her head against his shoulder. Emerald eyes wide and mandibles agape, Kanan'tú'lia tensed up at the sudden contact. " **/** T-Tahsé'ton... **\** " she whispered.

" **/** Shh, quiet now. You need this. **\** " he whispered back. " **/** Let it all out on me, I'm here for you. I will never leave you alone. **\** "

At his comforting words, Kanan'tú'lia slowly relaxed, leaning into his warm embrace. True to his word, she released the hold she had on her tears, allowing them to flow freely. Wrapping her arms tightly around his naked torso, the young girl wept for Kida and Zorin, letting out the regret of what her pride cost them both.


	4. The Strongest will Survive

_Hey guys, sorry about the long wait as I kind of had my attention on my Elder Scrolls story for a while._

 _In any case, now that I've come back to this story, I need to let you all know that I have made some signficant changes to the previous chapters. Therefore, for you to undertstand what's going on in this chapter, you_ will _have to read from the beginning. Sorry if that's an inconvenience, but the last chapters follow the same basic concept of the originals, I just gave the story a bit of an upgrade._

 _Again, sorry if you were enjoying it last time, but it is the same for the most part just with noticable changes._

 _Anyway, for those of you who have already read the updated chapters, go ahead and read on. Hope you enjoy._

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO _  
_**

 **8th of the 3rd season, 43rd Era, 4310th cycle  
** **Sangheili Calender  
** **Eighth Age of Reclamation  
** **Covenant Calender  
** **March 20th 2505  
** **UNSC Military Calender**

Another cycle passed and it was the start of autumn in the Yermo region of Sanghelios, the pale green leaves of the forest starting to transform in preperation of the upcoming winter. With the red sands of the plains and the moutains either side of it, the forest almost created a strangely stitched blanket across the land. Even though the summer season had passed, it was still warm but there were voluminous grey clouds blanketing the sky, blocking the light and warmth of the suns, threatening to burst forth heavy rains.

Sitting within her hut before a warm fire, legs crossed, hands on knees and back straight, Kanan'tú'lia was meditating.

The past cycle had been much harder for the youngling, ever since the incident with Jera's children. Her mother had been putting tremendous pressure upon her, forcing her to work harder to regain the honour she lost that day. Even her tutors were pushing her past her boundaries. Nowadays, it wasn't often that the hunters would playfully jibe with her, or comfort her when she became hurt. That was the norm for all children that outgrew their own playfulness, but Kanan'tú'lia swore they were being harder on her on purpose.

Either way, the harsh words and training had hardened her and now that she had just turned ten, she is a proficient hunter. At this age, a Sangheili is not considered an adult, as the age of consent it actually fourteen and adulthood fifteen, but the Wonderers believe that the age of ten means that a child has reached an important milestone in their lives, and are thus ready to be tested to determine if they are worthy of adulthood. Any child that reaches this age- on the day they hatched- would complete their training and their final test would begin. That is what she is meditating for.

Her emerald eyes hidden behind their lids, Kanan'tú'lia took deep breaths to relax her body, mentally preparing herself for what is in store this day.

After one final inhale through her nostrils, she let the air out through her mouth as her emerald eyes slowly opened. She had noticed the absence of noise outside the wooden walls, which meant it would be time soon. Standing from her position on the floor, Kanan'tú'lia padded to her corner of the hut, grabbing a small satchel. Kneeling beside her sleeping mat, the girl picked out some food for herself, though only the barest amount. This would only last for a day, after that she had to make do with whatever she could find.

Finally, after slipping in a bakhe fruit, she was about to tie off the bag but paused as her eyes drifting around the hut's interior, knowing that this may be the last time she would see it. She remembered fondly sitting at the fireplace with her grandmother, a young girl thirsty for knowledge hanging on to every word the elder had said. She sighed. Kanan'tú'lia missed her grandmother greatly. Yes she had her time to mourn her, but those times were the happiest of her life and when she died, she felt things went down hill harshly from there.

She frowned then, shaking her head. There was no room for such things now, she is reaching the most trying time of her life-cycle and she cannot be distracted with such thoughts. With that in mind, Kanan'tú'lia grabbed her satchel and immediately walked out the hut, forgetting the innocence of her childhood. It is time to grow up.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

The inside of the village walls was eerily quiet as Kanan'tú'lia walked through. No doubt they were gathered at the entrance of the pass, ready for her ceremony. It's a good thing she left when she did as she didn't want to be late, her mother would be furious.

Quickening her steps, Kanan'tú'lia marched with a purpose through the wall's exit and to the cliff pass. Almost immediately she noticed the presence of the tribe at the entrance of the pass, all standing in two groups, forming a makeshift aisle for her to walk down. At the end stood her mother and the wise woman.

Breathing deeply, her head held high, Kanan'tú'lia trekked down to them.

On her way down, from the corner of her eye she spotted Tahsé'ton. Seeing that she had noticed him, he gave her a sympathetic smile and she gave a tiny one in reply. Throughout the cycles, when others had glared at her or just plainly ignored her, he was always there by her side. He comforted her, supported her and gave her a shoulder to cry on whenever she needed it. She felt eternally grateful to him, as she would never have made it intact if it wasn't for him.

Also, since he was older than her by at least a season, he had already passed his trial. It was a close call for him, as he returned to the village with an ugly bite across his shoulder, but he had made it successfully. The bite had scarred over, but the event that caused it was still in the forefront of his mind and he made his concerns for her known, as she was to face the same thing. Kanan'tú'lia reassured him that she would be fine of course, but she was grateful for his worry for her none the less, as it showed there was still someone who cared enough to confront her about it.

Wishing that she could stop and heartily thank him but knowing that wasn't proper, she instead tried to convey her feelings to him through her eyes. His soft look was all the answer she needed.

When he was out of her vision, Kanan'tú'lia stopped in front of the two most powerful women of the tribe. She straightened her back as the shaman rose her arm, the other leaning heavily on her staff. The cycles were becoming unkind to the shaman, as she was finally starting to show signs of her age. No doubt it won't be too long before Ts'vaaní would become the new shaman.

The wise woman rose her voice, initiating the ceremony with the traditional opening chant, one that Kanan'tú'lia had heard thousands of times before when she attended these ceremonies. She only paid the barest attention, knowing only when the chant would end. It finally came when the shaman said ' **/** So let it be. **\** ' with the villagers repeating her. Once silence fell, her mother stepped forward.

" **/** We stand here once more, within the eyes of our Ancestors, to witness the departure of a future huntress. **\** " she addressed the assembled, folding her hands together in front of herself. Kanan'tú'lia kept her eyes forward, looking to her mother but not really seeing her. " **/** She has passed all the trials and came through unscathed. And now, on the day of her hatching, her final test shall begin. **\** " looking down at her ten cycle old daughter, Ke'atuól'ti lowered her voice so only she and the shaman could hear her. " **/** Your challenge is as follows: you will go out into the tundra and make your way to the Kolaar Mountains. There you shall find the home of the helioskrill. Find and kill one and return with it's pelt. But know that if you fail to return by seasons end, it shall be assumed that you have perished. Do you understand? **\** "

" **/** Yes. **\** " Kanan'tú'lia replied without hesitation. This was a trial that all hunters went on, as it was a test of the skills they had learnt. After all, the helioskrill was one of Sanghelios' most respected predators. It was mainly found in the moutainous reigion of Qivro, but there were sightings of the creatures making their home in any mountain range, such as Kolaar. It's hunting tactic consisted of holding completely still and imitating a rock, allowing unsuspecting prey to pass by before striking. It was truly the most cunning and terrifying creature to date. It would be no easy feet to find one, so Kanan'tú'lia will have to do some careful planning as she travelled.

Kanan'tú'lia was snapped from her thoughts when her mother spoke again. " **/** As you are entering the plains with only a day's worth of food and a single weapon for protection, you must use all the skills you have learnt to survive. Not only is this a test of your hunter's mettle, but also your survivability. You will have no chance without a means to properly defend yourself. **\** " leaving her advice at that, the woman stepped away as the shaman took her place.

In the elder's arms were several items, of which she presented to the youngling one by one. The first item was a necklace, the twine threaded with claws and two long canines. She looped it over the girl's head. " **/** This is a symbol of strength, crafted from the remains of a male haelek. **\** " she then presented a sheaf of feathers, each originating from different species, and threaded that onto her belt. " **/** This is a symbol of swiftness, presented from the flocks of this valley. **\** " she then took a leathery pelt from over her arm, coloured a deep orange, and draped it over the girl's shoulders. " **/** This is a symbol of cunning, taken from the hide of the last defeated helioskrill. And finally, your weapon, a symbol of your tribe. Of the family you will always carry with you. **\** " she presented a dagger with a bow of her head. Kanan'tú'lia took it without a word, slipping it into the empty sheath on her waist.

Her mother then raised her arms, beckoning the attention of the clan. " **/** The gifts have been received, you are now in the care of the Spirit of Sanghelios. May it guide your hand and the Ancestors grant you strength in this journey. **\** " at that, both she and the shaman stepped aside, opening the way to the cliff-side pass. Inhaling deeply, Kanan'tú'lia adjusted her pack before running through.

Ke'atuól'ti's eyes softened as the form of her daughter disappeared through the pass, sighing with sorrow. " **/** Be well and swift, my child. **\** " she whispered.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Kanan'tú'lia ran through the cliff and into the tundra, swiftly making her way to the nearest rock formation and climbing it. From there, she quickly scanned the landscape. She had scoured this plain many times in the past few cycles and knew where potential hiding points for her would be. Beyond that though was unfamiliar territory and while the Kolaar Mountains were not hard to spot, as they sat proudly upon the horizon, getting there would be a challenge.

Kanan'tú'lia narrowed her eyes, scanning the forest line and seeing the war academy, as that was the only viable landmark for miles around. If she is to make good time in reaching those mountains, then she will have to cut past there. She estimated that it would take her at least two days to reach the edge of the forest, and half a day at most to get to the walls of the academy. From there she had no idea what the terrain was like or what sort of animals roamed around, but she was confident that she'd be able to adapt.

All being well, she'll make it to the foot of the moutains unscathed and promptly, should nothing divert her.

In the meantime, she needed something other than a dagger to protect herself with so with that in mind, she climbed back down the rocks and begun to search for the materials to make a basic bow and some arrows. It was easy to find some sturdy branches laying at the foot of the lomesome trees across the plains, as with some small stones and thick but flexible grasses for rope. In that time, the weather had become worse so with materials in hand, Kanan'tú'lia ran to the closest shelter she could find, which happened to be a hollowed stone archway.

The shelter was, praise the Ancestors, empty. Situating herself directly under it, Kanan'tú'lia got to work on making herself a make-shift bow. Removing any unwanted twigs from the branches, she clumped them together and tied them with the grasses, making sure to keep the knot secure like she was taught. She tied some more grass half way down the shaft, creating a comfortable grip for herself. With that done, she tested the strength of it, finding that it was very sturdy. She nodded in satisfaction but frowned shortly after that. What was she going to use for the pull string? She can't use the grass- it may be strong but that wasn't enough for flawlessly firing arrows.

Groaning, she laid the unfinished bow on her lap but it was then that she got an idea. The feathers at her waist were tied together with robust string. That will do nicely.

Taking the bundle off her belt, Kanan'tú'lia untied the feathers. Once she had the string, she then used some more of the grass to tie some of the feathers to her bow. The rest she threaded to intricate parts of her clothing. With that done, she tied the string around and between the sticks on one side, tugging on it to ensure it will hold fast. Satisfied that it will hold, she stood up and placed the end of the bow down on the ground, trapping it with her foot as she bent the bow to tie the string securely on the other side.

Kanan'tú'lia appraised her handiwork, lofting the shaft in her left hand and pulling the string with her right. It held. With a smile, she placed it down beside her, beginning work on making some arrows, using a nearby rock to shape the stones into arrowheads. By the time she finished she only had four arrows, though with luck she won't have to make more any time soon.

Looking out the rain had picked up considerably, but she wanted to get as much of a head start as she could before nightfall. Sighing, Kanan'tú'lia gathered her arrows together, using the last of the grass she had to tie them to the bow before looping it over her shoulder. Before leaving, she threw the head of the helioskrill pelt over her crown in an effort to block the rain, starting a light jog across the tundra.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

The rain had stopped by morning, but it was still very muggy. Kanan'tú'lia paid no attention to that though as she stayed crouched upon a ridge, watching a herd of keifra take advantage of the wet weather as they bathed themselves in the mud that spanned the banks of the river. The girl had originally come here to quench her thirst but had decided, upon seeing the herd, to wait before doing so. She was tempted to shoot one of the keifra so she has more food for the journey, but she decided against it. Yes, there wouldn't be many opportunities like this during her travel, but it was better to remain safe than sorry.

Experience had taught her that any sort of predator would be nearby stalking the herd, particularly the haelek. As they are both ambush and attack predators, the haelek would no doubt be lurking in the grasses, waiting to make their move to catch one of the keifra and the last thing she wanted was to get in the centre of that mess. She certainly didn't relish the thought of facing another of those beasts any time soon, so she remained in wait.

It was difficult though, as she attampted to wet her throat with little success, being this close to water. With how dehydrated her esophagus was, it was bordering on painful with every swallow of saliva and the dryness even seemed to travel all the way down to her chest, making her feel as though she was shrivelling up from the inside. If she didn't get some water soon, then she was sure she would collapse.

Finally there was movement amongst the herd, as the keifra, almost as one, scrambled away from the river bank. It wasn't difficult to see what had them so spooked, as a lone haelek had chraged out of the tall grass nearby directly toward the herd. Even fom this distance, Kanan'tú'lia could see that the predator was a female, due to the smaller mane and how lean her body was. She instantly knew what was happening and she watched with rapt fascination.

The female haelek chased the herd away from the river bank, though she didn't go in for the attack. She wasn't meant to though as she was the runner of the pack, herding the prey toward where her other pack mates lay in wait. Sure enough, as the keifra ran away, another female haelek burst from the grasses and charged directly for one. Before Kanan'tú'lia could blink, the female attacker pounced upon one of the herbivores, digging her claws into it's hide as she forced it down. The attack spurned the rest of the herd to scatter in another direction, making no move to come to the defence of the chosen victim, leaving it to the haelek's mercy.

The moment the prey was wrestled to the ground, another haelek female plus the runner pounced upon it as well, using their combined weight to pin it down. One predator immediately clamped her jaws around the keifra's throat, her sharp teeth puncturing the jugular and suffocated the animal to death. It didn't take long for the struggles to cease and soon enough, the keifra was killed.

Kanan'tú'lia smiled. It was a rare to catch sight of a haelek pack hunting their prey, and it was one she would treasure for a while. The helioskrill may be the most respected hunter on Sanghelios, but the haelek in her opinion was a very close second. Their ingenius use of tactics and teamwork are next to none, making them the most reknown predators of the plains; top of the food chain.

As she continued to watch, that was when the females all scrambled off the corpse almost as one, the roars of the alpha male forcing them away as he approached the kill. Followed behind him were two more haelek females and a number of cubs, though they too kept their distance as the male crouched over the body and began feasting. Honestly, Kanan'tú'lia wasn't sure why male haeleks were always the first to partake of the kill, or why the females allowed it. She guessed it was a way to assert his dominance over them, or it was some sort of understanding maybe. They provide food for him and he provides them protection from rival males. Either way she wasn't sure, but they were wild animals and would follow whatever baser instincts they have regardless of her own or any other Sangheili's thoughts.

In any case, now that the pack was distracted with their kill, Kanan'tú'lia felt it was the best time to climb down the rocks and get a drink from the river while she still could. She had to be fast though, if the animals were to spot her who was to say that they wouldn't decide to make a meal out of her as well? Therefore, as she ran to the bank, she kept an eye upon the pack, ready to bolt at a moments notice.

Reaching the river, Kanan'tú'lia waded through the mud to get to the waters, paying no mind to her boots being coated with the slippy dirt. Now in reaching distance, the girl cupped her hands together and scooped out the water, bringing it to her mouth where she quickly tipped what she could down her throat. She repeated this a couple more times until she was satisfied that her thirst had been quenched. She had gotten her tunic and leggings a little wet but she paid no mind to it, since the wet clothing would help to keep her cool while on the move. Plus, even with the dwindling heat of the autumn suns, they would dry up in no time anyway.

However, just as she was about to rise and get out of the mud, that was when a noise caught her attention. It was the sound of feet padding rapidly on the ground, and it was getting closer to her alarmingly fast. Suddenly on alert, as she knew that she was in trouble, Kanan'tú'lia immediately began scrambling back, trying to pull her legs out of the mud but the thick sloshy earth had entrapped them, which made it difficult for her to get out quickly.

Her hearts began racing then, a slither of panic gripping her conscience as she fought against the mud. Looking to her right and upon briefly seeing the form of a very fast creature sprinting right for her, Kanan'tú'lia knew she wouldn't be able to get away in time so she snapped her hand to her dagger, wrenching it out of its sheath. The moment the weapon was in her grasp, that was when a hissing growl reached her ears as she turned back to face her adversary.

The first thing Kanan'tú'lia saw of the beast was a wide open maw of razor sharp teeth, and she jerked as far back as she could while stabbing her dagger forth. To her luck, her strike proved to be both successful and helpful for her predicament. The bone blade stabbed directly into the soft flesh of the beast's top jaw, effectively tearing the muscle and spewing violet blood. Luckily, the creature's attack had been thwarted by her own and missed it's intended target, which had been her throat. It shrieked in pain as it crashed in the mud at her side, a long and spiky body sinking in the slush in almost an instant.

Without hesitating, Kanan'tú'lia reared back her weapon again and stabbed down into the soft divides in it's neck. The beast hissed, rolling it's body away from her which forced her to wrench her dagger out of it's flesh so she wouldn't lose it. As it did so, the youngling took the opportunity to pull herself fully out of the mud, her breath uneven and hearts thudding under her ribcage as she finally slipped out.

Caked in mud and scared for her life, Kanan'tú'lia whirled back round with her dagger poised, ready to take on the beast if it decided to attack again. Sure enough, she saw the creature running at her again with it's maw wide open. She lowered into a combat stance and rose her dagger, ready for it when it leapt at her again. The girl managed to snap her free hand forward and grasp the creature around it's throat, but with the weight of the animal slamming into her at once, it caused her to fall onto her back.

Again, all she saw was a mouth filled with sharp teeth nashing for her, as she pushed the beast back with her forearm against it's neck. She struggled with all her might to keep the jaws from enveloping her throat, hissing in pain as sharp claws dug into her flesh and tore her clothing, gripping her dagger tightly and stabbing directly into the creature's side.

It shrieked out again, the head recoiling away from her momentarily before attempting to bite her again. However, Kanan'tú'lia continued to stab it repeatedly, over and over again wherever she could until it finally went limp, slumping on top of her with a final raspy breath.

Relieved that it was now dead, Kanan'tú'lia pushed the body off her and scrambled to her feet, gasping in pain as she gripped her arm, feeling a torrid of blood trickling down from her shoulder where a deep graze had been left behind by the creature's claws. She had other scratches as well, but they were not as deep as this one. She would need to get this cleaned and bandaged, and soon.

Glancing up at the animal she just killed, her eyes widened when she recognised it. It was a thremaleon, the spiky and leathery brown hide giving it away in an instant. By the Ancestors, she had no idea there were still thremaleon out in the wilds, let alone in the tundra. They used to inhabit the desert in great numbers eras ago, but they were now near extinction and she believed the only ones around for miles were the ones at her village. This one must have been in desperate need to hunt prey if it travelled all the way here from the desert.

However it was soon made evident that she wasn't out of danger yet, as she felt eyes upon her. Suddenly paranoid, she snapped around and spotted two of the female haeleks were creeping toward her. Seeing that the Sangheili had spotted them, both the predators paused, sharp eyes boring into her being and their bodies tensed up like a spring. Her chest went cold but she still faced them fully, dropping into a defensive stance. She knew she wouldn't be able to take on both these females if they decided to attack her, she was lucky enough that they didn't just pounce on her when she had her back to them. Either way, she kept her eyes on both of them, tightening her grip on her weapon.

Sweat then began to form as one of the animals took another step toward her, it's shoulders flexing as though it was ready to charge. Kanan'tú'lia nearly panicked but forced herself to stay calm and hold her ground. She remembered what her tutor had taught her when faced by these predators: she had to keep them in her sights, never let her guard down and if there were a smal number of them, attempt to intimidate them. Fierce predators though they may be, female haelek's never attack prey that show they are willing to stand up to them, prefering to go after the weaker opponents. However, if the whole pack or the male pitched in, there was not much hope to scaring them off, so one had to rely only on quick thinking and agility and hope that higher ground is found, as the creatures were not the best climbers.

She wasn't sure why female haelek react to such things the way they do, but it didn't matter at the moment. As there was only two of them, this knowledge could help to save her life here.

Therefore she took a deep breath to calm herself, flaring her mandibes to show her teeth and rose her weapon before bounding forward in a fake charge, loudly growling at them as she did so. The closest haelek paused immediately, quite possibly shocked at the Sangheili's boldness. Kanan'tú'lia didn't stop there though, as she growled at them again, raising her weapon and darting forward before stopping. That time, the lead haelek bounded back while the other lowered down slightly. Seeing that her plan was working, the girl upped the ante by fully roaring at them now and waving her weapon toward them threateningly.

That had the desired effect, as both the female haelek backed off sharply, clearly intimidated by her display. Deciding to give it one last push, Kanan'tú'lia charged forward a ways and roared again which finally convince the two animals to run from her and return to their pack.

Seeing them go, Kanan'tú'lia thought it best not to push her luck any longer and pivoted around and ran the opposite direction, making it back to the ridge she was stationed at earlier and climbed it as fast as she could. Once at the top she stopped and collapsed to her knees, inhaling and exhaling breath rapidly like they were her last as both her hearts pounded in her chest. By the Spirit, that was too much of a close call. Escaping certain death once was bad enough, so she felt extremely lucky that she was able to twice. The Ancestors must be watching over her, surely.

She stayed atop the rocks for a while, dressing the wound on her arm by ripping off a bit of her tunic and watched as the haelek pack all feasted on the keifra while the male kept watch, having had his fill a while ago. She too took advantage of the time by munching on her bahke fruit, as that was the only thing edible left in her pack. She probably could have gone back down the ridge and retrieved the thermaleon corpse for food, but frankly she didn't want to risk it. She nearly lost her life today, so she decided to play it safe and find something to hunt later.

By the time the pack began to settle down, the second sun was reaching the highest point in the now yellowy sky and Kanan'tú'lia decided this was the best time to move on. Turing away from the river, she traversed down the rocks and continued her journey north to the forest. Hopefully, she'll make it to the forest's edge by nightfall.

Being sure that everything was in place, Kanan'tú'lia slid off her bow just in case and started a light jog north.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

By mid-day next morning, Kanan'tú'lia had made it to the forest and was now perched in a tree further in, directly on the edge of the clearing where the towering walls of the war academy was situated. And by the Ancestors, it was _big_! She never imagined that something this enormous could be built by hand. Maybe city-borns are more intuitive than she originally thought. Even now, she could see over the wall as huge throngs of adults went about their business and young boys trained under the tutelge of the warriors.

However, even though there was quite a lot that she could see, it didn't mean that eveything was exposed to her curious eyes. She wanted to see more. Her conscience protested against her, telling her that she couldn't waste time like this, plus seeing the number of guards patrolling the top of the walls didn't help matters. Even still, despite the danger of being spotted, this was a perfect opportunity to see for herself what the city-borns were like in their own environment. With that in mind, Kanan'tú'lia rose from the branch and climbed down the tree, sprinting toward the academy walls once her feet touched the ground.

As she got closer, she studied the architecture of the walls and mentally calculated the best route to take up. It turned out that the walls were not a perfectly smooth stonework, but had strange protruding patterns and ledges all around it with a few imperfections throughout. It would be easy for her to climb, and the ledges would provide her the ability to rest as she went up.

With this now in mind, Kanan'tú'lia reached the walls and kicked off it, grabbing the first protrusion she could reach. From there she began her climb, athletically bounding up the wall like she was clinging to it as an inscet would, occasionally leaping so she could reach her next hand-hold.

Before long, the girl had reached the first ledge, pulling herself up and over the stone fencing, her feet landing solidly upon the masonary. The ledge was connected securely to the wall, and a doorway was set before her but was shut tight. Certain that the door wouldn't open, Kanan'tú'lia shook out her arms, as though she was convincing her muscles to stop burning and blood to continue flowing through her veins, looking up as she finished. It was still a little ways off from the top, but she was confident that she'll reach it so long as she aims for the ledges to rest herself on the way. If anything, she took this exercise as a learning curve for when she has to climb the mountain upon reaching it.

Feeling her muscles had stopped burning, Kanan'tú'lia began again, grabbing protrusions and imperfections to assist in her ascent. It wasn't long after her second and third rest before she finally reached the top of the walls. Before pulling herself up though, she peeked over the edge only to duck back down when a guard marched past. Staying flush against the stone, Kanan'tú'lia listened to the steady footsteps of the guard, waiting as they became more distant. Before long, she deemed it safe enough for her to pull herself up and she did so swiftly. She spotted an area that was lower than where she was crouched and immediately headed for it, flattening against the wall so the guard wouldn't see her.

Now hidden away, Kanan'tú'lia's eyes widened as she saw the activity below. The courtyard was huge, and there were so many city-borns here, ranging from adults both in metal suits and clothing and young boys. There wasn't a single girl in sight, only the occasional adult woman.

From here she could see groups of younglings training in different means. Most were fighting hand to hand, others were using staves or other such weapons. Far in the distance, she noticed boys being put through some sort of courses to test their agility. Further from that, others were using very noisy things that Kanan'tú'lia knew from Sulr's teaching were modern projectile weapons, ones that used what he called plasma as ammunition though she had no idea what that was. It didn't sound very effective whatever it was, not at all like an arrow.

As she continued to watch, she began to wonder if Zorin was around here somewhere, or if he had already left for the Covenant as she wasn't quite sure how old he was when they met a year ago. In the end though, she shook those thoughts from her mind. If Zorin really is here, then he would never want to see her after what had happened with his sister.

Pushing away the meloncholy that brought her, she put all thoughts of Zorin out of her mind, deciding it wouldn't be best to make herself known to anyone down there. Having said that, there was a lot of Sangheili that she could see, so maybe that meant there wasn't anyone inside.

With that in mind, she decided to look over the edge to see if she could find a way inside. When she climbed the wall, she had seen multiple openings that were tightly shut, but if could find one that was open, then she could get inside and explore for a bit and find out a bit more about the city-borns.

To her luck, she spotted one of those ledges with the doors on them, only this one was wide open. With a wide grin, Kanan'tú'lia breifly glanced around to make sure no one can see her then allowed herself to drop down, turning her body so she could grab the edge before she would fall and climbed down. Upon reaching the ledge with the open door, she gazed inside.

What met her eyes was a fairly big chamber, towering stone arches bringing shape to the room, with tapestries and other such decoration hanging within the alcoves. What looked like large stone slabs were erected with the greatest of care on the opposite side of her, though each looked fairly old. Even still, the etchings upon the stones seemed still to be legible, even though she couldn't read. Before the stones were some sort of table with strange looking bowls, holders and other such assortments that Kanan'tú'lia had never seen before, along with an unusual but sweeten fragrance lingering with the doorway. She was enchanted by everything she saw within.

Kanan'tú'lia, seeing that the place was empty, stepped inside, being sure to not scrap her boots across the stone floor. She had to blink her eyes a few times to get used to the darker atmosphere, as the only light sources were tiny flames burning within little pots on the walls. A sharp change to the harsh light of the suns outside.

As she stepped into the centre of the chamber, she gasped when her booted feet touched something soft. Shuffling back as though she was burned, she glanced down to see the floor covered in a plush looking cloth, with colours and patterns mingling together to create a beautiful piece of artwork. However, it appeared her dusty boots had left an imprint upon the cloth, and she vibrated her mandibles bashfully at that. Hopefully that didn't mean it was ruined.

In fact, now that she thought about it, everything in here looked very nice and immaculately clean while she was dirty and covered with dust from her journey. Realising this, she figured this was the worst place to begin exploring, so she had to get out of here before she ruins something else.

Just as she was about to walk back through the door to the outside, that was when the sounds of a door across from her began to make some sort of jiggling sound. A spike of electricity flowed through her nerves, alerted to the fact that someone was about to come through that door. She panicked then, swivelling her gaze around in a desperate bid to find somewhere to hide, the thought that she could just run out the ledge door not even occuring to her at that moment.

She decided in the end to hide behind the stone slabs at the back of the room, since they would be more than big enough to shelter her whole body from view. Without hesitating, Kanan'tú'lia ran over and ran round the back of the slabs, not wanting to risk jumping over the table lest she knocks something over and cause a noise that would no doubt get her caught. Flattening her back against the stone, she forced herself to remain as still and quiet as she could as the door clicked.

The portal was pushed open and heavy footsteps echoed through, instantly telling Kanan'tú'lia that the person was an adult male in those metal suits of theirs. She didn't want to risk peeking round to have a look at him though, as he would see her if she moved from her spot. Therefore she stayed as still as she could possibly be, her mandibles clamped hard together to stifle her breathing.

From through the sound of her blood rushing through her ears and the thumping of her own heartbeats, she heard the booted feet pacing across the stone floor before coming to a stop. The man muttered words of confusion but he soon sighed in exasperation straight after. "By Gods," she heard him say, his voice deep. "Those younglings have disobeyed protocols again. What in the Forerunner's name possessed them to creep here and sully the grounds like this."

Her eyes widened at that. Oh no, he saw the mess she made, and that meant that he may be able to find her. She mentally cursed, berating herself for allowing her curiosity to get the better of her.

She heard him hum and she suddenly got the sense that he was looking toward her hiding place. It was then that she realised that he may be able to smell her unwashed body, despite the flowery scent in the air. She felt sweat beading on her forehead as a shiver went down her spine, suddenly fearful of what could happen when he discovers her.

Kanan'tú'lia grinded her mandibes tightly together and squeezed her eyes shut as booted feet began to pace over to her hiding place. Oh Ancestor's grace, he's going to find her and only the Spirit knows what he may do to her if he gets ahold of her. She has to be sure to get out of his reach before that happens then escape out the door, he wouldn't be able to follow her down the outside walls with his suit in the way. So with that plan in mind, Kanan'tú'lia tensed her muscles, ready to spring up and run at a moments notice.

However, just when she heard the man was less than a foot away from the slabs, that was when another sound reached her ears. It sounded like a crackling hiss, somewhat similar to distant thunder, but was a little more alien to her. She never had time to analyse it before a noise of a body slamming into another sounded out, the man letting out a muffled cry shortly after. However, that soon was turned to a gurgle, a body hitting the floor with a sickening thump afterwards which was echoed with a clang of the metal suit.

Instantly knowing what had just happened, Kanan'tú'lia felt bile rise up in her throat as the smell of blood overpowered the incense. Someone had killed that man and the girl felt sick at that thought. She was no stranger to death, but for some reason there was something that felt incredibly wrong with a Sangheili being killed by another rather than an animal. She instantly covered her mouth to keep any sounds she may have made completely muffled.

However it seemed that didn't entirely work as the next thing she knew, there was something bright and hot in her vision. She nearly shrieked in fright as the thing was so close to her head, feeling an intense heat radiating off it in waves which almost burnt her skin. As it came into focus, she discovered the thing was two prongs which were speared down to razor sharp points and coloured such an intense blue, the likes of which she had never seen before, and had some sort of swirling patterns running the length of them. Was this some sort of weapon?

From behind the stones she was still flat against, a different voice whispered through the silence. "Come on out now." the tone was soft but the demand was clear and Kanan'tú'lia would be a fool to ignore it, especially with the weapon as close to her face as it was. Her whole form shaking, the girl slowly pushed off the stone and began moving around it, the weapon retreating to allow her to do so but was still trained upon her. Before long she was standing out in the open, her arms spread to the side so her assailant knows she won't be going for her own weapons.

Looking past the glowing thing, she soon was given the sight of the weapon's owner. Clearly an adult male, there was no doubt of that, only he had no distinguishing features that she could see as his head was encased with some sort of black mask, with what she could only assume were the eyeholes coloured a silver. Could he see out of that? She couldn't see his eyes at all. Either way, he was very tall and athletic looking, adorned in a fully black suit and what she could only guess was thick boiled leather over his chest, arms and legs. Some rounded blue weapon was sat on one of his thighs, of which was split down the centre where a handle was located, with some blue energy at the other end. Another weapon sat on his back, which was long and a dark purple colour. Needless to say, this man was one very intimidating figure.

Kanan'tú'lia's gazed past him, her emerald eyes widening when she saw a body of the man who almost caught her. She couldn't make out much about him, apart from the fact he was covered in a gold metal suit which was stained purple from his blood, the life-force also pooling on the floor below him. He was definitely dead, but where did this Sangheili in front of her come from? She didn't hear a second pair of boots come in after him, or sound out anywhere for that matter.

Looking back to the man before her, he had made no movement but she could feel his eyes boring into her from through the eyeholes. Evidently yes, he can see through them. She looked back into those silver things, fighting with all her being to keep her fear off her face, thinking that maybe she could look through to see his eyes if she stared hard enough.

After a few more moments of silencce, Kanan'tú'lia was startled when the masked man spoke. "Well," he began in his deep voice. "What have we here? A Wonderer? What is a little Wonderer girl such as you doing within a war academy, hmm?"

Swallowing nervously, finding that her throat was suddenly dry, Kanan'tú'lia didn't reply. Not because she wanted to defy this man, that was the furthest thing from her thoughts, but because she had no idea on what to say. The way he spoke to her suggested that he wasn't bothered by the fact there was a dead Sangheili not one foot away from him, and that made her uneasy. It was clear this man was some sort of accomplished killer, though she didn't know why he had killed one of his own kind for apparently no reason.

Either way though, he didn't seem to be impressed by her silence as his weapon rose again as well as his voice. "Speak girl!"

Jolting in fright at his demand, Kanan'tú'lia quickly said the first thing that came to mind. "I wasn't stealing anything, I swear!" she yelled back, her accent obvious from her hysteria.

He merely huffed, though she wasn't sure whether it was because he was amused or from disbelief of her words, as his mask hid any expression he may have made. His words however proved that he was amused. "I do not recall making such claims, do you?" he waited for her to shake her head before continuing, his head tilting as he lowered his weapon once again. "I find it interesting that a Wonderer would 'wonder' directly into such a heavily guarded war academy, and without attracting the attention of the guards. Either way, I must thank you for providing me with a much needed distraction."

Distraction? Did he mean what she thought he meant? Glancing to the body behind him again, a sickening realisation came to her. Looking back to him, she spoke up again, her voice filled with disgust. "You used me as bait?"

"Of a sort. It was certainly the cleanest way I could have possibly killed my target." he responded. "I must say, when you arrived I was quite surprised. I did not know you were here until you walked right through that door. It is not often I am impressed, but you have shown remarkable skill for one so young. It is why you are not yet dead."

Kanan'tú'lia blinked at that, her mandibles dropping in surprise. "You mean... you are not going to kill me?"

"Not unless you give me a reason to." he responded truthfully, his armed hand jerking and the weapon he held suddenly disappeared. The girl gaped at that, amazed. How did he do that? Did city-borns know some form of sorcery? However just as that thought went through her mind, she noticed that the man was holding some sort of handle, which he soon placed upon his empty thigh where it stayed attatched. This confused her, now unsure if it was sorcery or some other secret known only to city-borns.

Her thoughts were soon interrupted though as the man spoke again, his arms crossing. "Having said that, if you are not eager for death than I would highly suggest you forget what you have seen here. Being what you are, you are no threat to my position, however I suggest you tread lightly. Should I hear that you have tipped off the guards here, then not even your clan will protect you from my wrath."

Kanan'tú'lia felt a wave of fear at that, knowing that he was deadly serious. There would be no way she would be able to fight him off as not only was he bigger and stronger than her, but he most likely knew techniques she doesn't and has those weapons of his as an advantage. Therefore, she nodded her head in understanding, not wanting to provoke him in any way.

"Good." he said, turning away from her and stepping over the corpse behind him, not even gracing the once alive Sangheili man a second look as he paced over to the open door leading outside. It was there he stopped, shadowing the doorway menacingly, the light of the suns darkening his form completely. He turned back to her, staring at her through those silver eyeholes, and Kanan'tú'lia could've sworn that he was smirking at her. "Be seeing you around, girl." his voice rang out before he disappeared round the portal.

Kanan'tú'lia shivered upon hearing the promise in his voice, but let out a sigh of relief once he left. By the Ancestors, she was certain he would have killed her then. There was in no way she was coming back here now, as she never wanted to come across that man again.

Looking at the body a little ways from her though, Kanan'tú'lia winced, thinking it best if she got out of here before someone else comes by and thinks she was the one who killed him. The last thing she wanted was to be accused of murder, so she quickly ran to the ledge door and scaled back up the wall to the top. There was no sign of the black-clad man anywhere and she felt relieved of that. Running back to where she climbed up from earlier, while being sure that the guards didn't spot her, she began the long descent down and immediately ran northward upon reaching the forest floor.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Days later, Kanan'tú'lia was now in the thickest parts of the forest and was barely able to see through the canopy. At the current moment in time, the Sangheili girl had climbed up the tallest tree she could find so she could get her barings again. Since she couldn't see the sky very well despite the leaves constantly falling from their branches, it was difficult to know which way she was going since the mountains were hidden away.

Now she was up high, she could see the mountains clearly, though they were still so far off. Seeing that, Kanan'tú'lia began to worry that she'll take too long reaching the base, and therefore will not have enough time to get back to the village once she kills the helioskrill. _If_ she kills the helioskrill. There was no guarantee that she would be able to take on the predator after all, and it may end up killing her.

She frowned then, shaking those thoughts from her mind. Of course she will make it, she can't give up because the mountains look like they're far away. Such sights can be deceiving after all. As for the helioskrill, she had survived feirce predators thus far, so therefore she may be able to take it one she she was careful enough.

Even still, she wouldn't be making much progress any time soon, as the final sun was slowly following its kin under the horizon, turning the sky red as night approached. She'd have to find somewhere to camp soon, otherwise she may end up falling prey to the animals of this plain. She had avoided a confrontation so far, but that wouldn't last long unless she was cautious. Sighing, Kanan'tú'lia pivoted on the branch she was perched on and began the climb down, being sure to stay mindful of her footing during her descent. She had learnt a while back that the barks of the trees in the forest were much more slippery than the ones in the tundra, which almost rewarded her with a perilos fall if she hadn't been quick enough to save herself.

Finally reaching the forest floor, Kanan'tú'lia began the long process of searching for a suitable location to settle down for the night. She had to be careful about what she chose though, as most creatures tend to take residence in caves and the last thing she wanted was to stumble into a predator's den.

By the time the final sun sank below the horizon and the twin moons appeared, Kanan'tú'lia at long last found a shallow incline beneath a overhang of rocks. Releived that she found something before it got too dark, the girl immediately slid into the incline and removed her bow from her back as well as her satchel, placing them carefully down as she leant against the back wall and sat down. She was exhausted from the day's travel and was more than ready to fall alseep, but her grumbling stomach had other ideas. Thankfully, she still had some left over meat from her last hunt. It wouldn't be enough to fully sate her, but it will quiet her hunger until morning.

Reaching for her satchel, she pulled out the last piece of meat she had and starting tearing into it.

It didn't take her long to finish her meal, much to her disappointment, but at least her stomach wasn't demanding sustinance anymore. Therefore, she decided it best if she got some rest, as it was going to be a difficult day when she wakes up. Hunting on an empty stomach tended to break a person's focus. Kanan'tú'lia wriggled against the rock she leant against, trying to find a comfortable position to fall asleep in, soon closing her eyes and evening her breaths as she drifted off.

However, after what felt like only a few minutes, Kanan'tú'lia's eyes snapped open when her instincts began warning her that something was nearby. Having never ignored her instincts before, the girl immediately snapped to her feet, retrieving her weapons as she did so. She untied one of her arrows and readied it as she strained her ears, stepping out of her shelter cautiously.

It was still very dark out, as the moons were just barely seen from through the canopy, but her eyes had become adjusted to it as she slept so she could see well enough for a few feet. However, over the sound of the wind rustling the foilage around her, she heard a very distinct jittering noise. It sounded similar to laughing, however it had a bass undertone that suggested that it wasn't another Sangheili. Now alert, Kanan'tú'lia pulled back her arrow, pointing it in the direction of the sounds as she strained to see what was nearby.

Unfortunately though, she couldn't see anything against the darkness but the youngling knew that there was something there, stalking on the edge of her vision. No doubt though it wouldn't take too long before whatever it was would attack her, but she would never see it coming. She needed light.

With that in mind, Kanan'tú'lia dropped her bow and grabbed a fallen branch that was thankfully nearby and a pair of rocks. Frantically she began beating the rocks together, trying with all her might to create a spark and set the wood alight. As she did so, the jittering became louder, which had panic coursing through her system and made her work faster, praying to the Ancestors and the Spirit that the branch would catch fire.

Thankfully, after she felt as though the creatures were practically breathing down her neck, the tip of the branch caught fire. The second the orange flames came to life, Kanan'tú'lia lifted the log and pivoted around while waving the alighted stick at her assailants. Immediately, the animals backed off from her but didn't run away, each snarling and jittering as they began to circle her.

Now that she could see, Kanan'tú'lia could identify these creatures as feol, small nocturnal carnivores whose furry pelts were completely black, which enabled them to hunt under cover of darkness. Usually, due to their small size, they attacked animals that were smaller than them or near the same size, but it wasn't uncommon for them to attack larger prey if they were caught unawares. Just as she was.

Kanan'tú'lia cursed as the feol surrounded her, and she whipped around while waving the flames at them to keep them at bay. As they were nocturnal creatures, most light sources were harsh upon their eyes as their vision only enabled them to see in the dark, which was why they mainly kept to the outskirts of the light. However, Kanan'tú'lia knew that wouldn't last forever since if these creatures saw an opportunity to attack, they would do so. She wouldn't be able to run from them, as the majority of the pack would keep her in their sights, so the only way she could get out of this was by fighting.

Holding the burning branch like a staff, she growled at the feol, readying herself as the creatures swarmed around her. Eventually though, one of the creatures snarled and charged for her. Hearing it approach from behind, she pivoted around and swung her make-shift weapon, striking the feol while it was still in the air. The animal tumbled on the forest floor with a yelp, which prompted the rest of the pack to attack her.

Thankfully they didn't attack all at once, only the ones that were behind her attempted to do so, only to be rewarded with a burning stick striking them. But no matter how many times she hit them, they kept getting back up and trying to attack her again.

Kanan'tú'lia knew that she wouldn't be able to keep this up forever, as her fatigue had begun to catch up with her again, but she was unwilling to give in. After coming as far as she had, she wasn't about to just lay down and allow some small scavengers to bring her to defeat. She was determined not to die this night, therefore she decided to end this charade and bring the fight to the animals instead.

With a shout, Kanan'tú'lia charged for the nearest feol and bashed her flaming branch into it's body, making it shriek as it's pack-mates scrambled away from the fire. She swung again, catching another as it attempted to retreat, but she was suddenly pounced upon from behind. The girl cried out in pain when dozens of needle sharp teeth penetrated her shoulder, reaching up to grab the beast by the scruff of it's neck and throw it off her. Another came at her from the side as she did that, jumping upon her and as she had been focused on throwing away the first feol, the second caught her off guard as she fell to the ground, the flaming branch falling from her grip.

The attack surprised her, but Kanan'tú'lia instinctively grabbed the feol and rolled backward, pinning it below her once she was upright. She wrenched her dagger from its sheath and stabbed it down on the creature twice, only to be tackled yet again by another.

On her back now, she gripped the animal round it's throat and fought to keep it from biting hers. The girl snarled as she thrust her dagger into it's side, throwing to the side as it yelped. She too let out a yell of pain as another shot forward and sank it's teeth into her forearm. Snarling, she punched it directly in the face, which prompted to let go and scramble away.

Now free but still sensing more around her, Kanan'tú'lia scrambled for the flaming branch, making a mad grab for it. Once it was in her hands, she turned and knocked away another of the animals that attempted to attack her when her back was turned.

Soon enough, Kanan'tú'lia began to notice that she was now getting the upper hand, as the majority of the creatures attempted to flee. The rest still tried to attack her, but she continued to knock them away with precise swipes of her make-shift weapon. Before long, any feol that was not injured or dead began to run, disappearing into the foilage as she continued to wave the branch dangerously and snarling at them, further intimidating them.

It wasn't long before the feol retreated completely, leaving her alone once again. However, Kanan'tú'lia remained on her guard for a while longer, incase any decided to take their chances against her again. Thankfully, after minutes of silence passed by, the girl let out a sigh of relief as she straightened from her defensive stance. She groaned in pain and gripped her shoulder, feeling her blood continuing to well up from the injury. She needed to cover this to stem the bleeding so with the burning branch in hand, Kanan'tú'lia returned to her temporary camp, crawling back under the shelter.

Placing down the branch outside the mouth of the incline, the girl ripped off a shread of her tunic without hesitation and the tore it in two. Bunching the two pieces up, she pressed one on her shoulder and the other on the wound on her forearm. She wasn't worried about the wounds becoming infected, as Sangheili are inherently resiliant and are able to fight against any minor foreign materials that enter their bodies. Her only concern was stopping the bleeding, as the last thing she wanted was to attract something much bigger to her location.

After many minutes holding the cloths to her wounds, she pulled them away and tested the areas, finding that the bleeding had finally stopped. Sighing, as she was absolutely exhaused now, Kanan'tú'lia glanced around, seeing the corpses of the few feol she mangaed to kill strun about.

Eyes narrowing, Kanan'tú'lia slipped out the incline and retrieved all her equipment, deciding it best that she no longer stays here. The scent of blood is sure to attract bigger predators to this location and she really didn't want to have to face them in the state she's in. Unfortunately, it was far too dark for her to move too far, plus she was too tired to try to find another outcropping anyway. Therefore, she decided to climb up a tree and settle down on a thick branch.

At that, Kanan'tú'lia began shimmeying up the closest tree, ignoring her protesting muscles as she forced herself to ascend. Eventually, she made it to a suitable branch that was thick enough for her to straddle without falling off.

So, with her equipment still strapped to her body, Kanan'tú'lia staddled the branch and leant forward, resting her stomach against the bark and pillowed her head on her arms.

Still seeing the flames slowly eating away the branch below, Kanan'tú'lia rubbed her eyes and yawned. Now that she was sure nothing else would make an attempt on her life tonight, her body began shutting down, begging her to get some sleep. Obeying the commands of her fatigued body, Kanan'tú'lia wriggled to get comfortable and fell to sleep almost immediately.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

As the days crawled on into weeks, Kanan'tú'lia came ever closer to reaching the foot of the Kolaar Mountains. It was the middle of the season now and the base of the mountain was very close, as the terrain had become rocky with cliffs and crevices. The suns shone brightly overhead as the brown leaves fell from the trees and littered the forest floor as she gazed up, shielding her eyes from the light in an attempt to see the peak of the tallest mountain there. If she started the climb now, it would take her hours before she would find somewhere suitable to bunker down and it would be sunset soon. The worst thing she could do is attempt the climb at nightfall, so she decided to find something nearby to take shelter.

After a bit of searching, she found an outcropping of rocks that created a natural shelter, perfect for huddling within and lighting a fire at the entrance. After the event with the feol weeks ago, she had made tremendous effort to find defensible shelters and lighting fires at the entrance, all in an attempt to ward off any of the dangerous animals of the forest. She had employed this tactic numerous times during her trek through this plateu and was successful in keeping anything that meant harm toward her at bay. Therefore, she swiftly found any piece of fallen branches and sticks that was dry enough to burn and brought them back to her shelter. Arranging the sticks in a cone formation, she grabbed two nearby stone and began to scrap and bash them together, soon creating a spark that alighted the wood almost instantly. She threw crunched up leaves over the small embers to encourage them to grow and soon enough, she had a warm and healthy fire.

Now she had light, warmth and added protection, all she needed now was food. Thankfully, she still had enough light to hunt something down, so she slung her empty pack over her shoulders, drew her bow and untied one arrow, setting off to search for tracks.

It didn't take long before she found what she was looking for. Many creatures tended to travel this area for the waters that ran down the moutainside and conjoined to the river that ran through the tundra. That is precisely where the tracks were heading and soon enough, Kanan'tú'lia spotted a large herd of wild colo refreshing themselves at the bank.

Her emerald orbs darting between each of the animals, deciding one which one was best for her to take down. These colo were different than the ones from the plains, as the tundra colo had sandy coats to help them blend into the surroundings, while these ones had healthy brown hides. Either way, they were the same creatures and would provide her with much needed food.

She could attempt to kill the largest one there, but it would take too long to skin it and when she finished it would be far into the night. Plus she didn't want to carry too much meat, as it would spoil within days. All she would need is enough for her to make it up the mountain. Therefore, decision already made, Kanan'tú'lia aimed her arrow at an infant, who stood shakily beside it's mother. She felt guilty for killing a newly born creature, but it was necessary.

Inhaling and exhaling slowly, the girl narrowed her eyes as she looked down the shaft of her arrow. Seeing it was an easy shot, Kanan'tú'lia released the string, hearing it twang against her bracer. Once the projectile hit it had an immediate effect, as the entire herd became spooked and sprinted off as one. The infant on the other hand was dead in an instant, collapsing into a heap on the sandy bank.

Once the herd had run off, Kanan'tú'lia jumped up from her spot and ran to the carcass. Kneeling down next to the dead colo babe, she placed a hand gently on it's unmoving neck. " **/** Forgive me brother. **\** " she recited, closing her eyes sadly. " **/** May the Spirit of Sanghelios embrace you in the afterlife. **\** " placing her bow beside her, she pulled out the arrow. She drew her dagger then, preparing to skin the creature.

It took her about a hour to completely skin the colo and even less than that to seperate the flesh from it's bones. Now with a pack full of meat she rose up, deciding to leave the remains behind for any scavanging animal. She was risking enough as it was by having a bag full of fresh meat on her back, and she only hoped there won't be much of a trail to follow after her as she made her way back to her camp.

Kanan'tú'lia wasn't worried about getting lost, as she had learnt early in her training how to read the land to find her way back to her intended destinations. Therefore, following the distinct shapes and markings upon the foilage around her, she soon made it back to her temporary camp. Slipping under the shelter, she set down her pack and pulled out the meat.

As she was too hungry to wait for the meat to cook over the fire, she just began munching on it. Sangheili as a whole had strong stomachs and are able to digest bones if they happened to be ingested. Therefore, she had no fear of eating raw flesh since she won't get sick from it.

Now with a belly full of meat, Kanan'tú'lia securely closed up her bag and dug a shallow hole to put it in before covering it, in an effort to mask the scent of the meat from predators. Upon completing that, only then did she realise that it had become dark, deciding it was now time to get some sleep as she had a long day of climbing tomorrow.

Settling down on the ground, Kanan'tú'lia lay her head upon the mound and got comfortable. It didn't take long before she fell asleep with the fire giving her much needed warmth.

 **oOoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Half way through the next morning, Kanan'tú'lia had begun the climb and reached a flat enough area to rest. From up here, the girl could see far above the treeline, just managing to make out the red sands of the tundra far in the distance. There was quite a bit of cloud coverage, which sheltered her from the heat of the suns, but she was still covered in sweat as she collapsed onto her rear and rested against the rock face. She was glad to have had the foresight of creating a drinking pouch from one of the empty organs she harvested from the colo last night, as her throat had begun to get dry with every breath she took.

Taking the make-shift waterskin from her satchel, she tipped it back so the water within slid down her throat, wetting her esophegus with the cool liquid. Sighing once she swllowed it down, Kanan'tú'lia wiped her forehead from the moisture gathered there before curling her hands into fists. Despite her tiredness, she managed a smiled as she watched the horizon while waiting for her limbs to obey her again.

From up here, the tundra could be seen and she swore that she could see the cliffs that hid her home, but then again that may be her tired mind playing tricks on her. Either way, she couldn't wait to get back home. She may not admit it outloud, but she had begun to miss her village. Her mother's face, her tutor's lectures, the other children's games, and Tahsé'ton.

Especially Tahsé'ton.

With him at the forefront of her mind, it gave Kanan'tú'lia a boost of energy. The last few cycles, she and him had become much closer with one another, more than she ever thought they could have. She had believed that it was because he was the only one through this last cycle that had always stayed at her side as her friend, but now that she hadn't seen him for weeks, she was starting to feel an ache in her chest whenever she thought of him. She had no idea what it was, but it encouraged her to keep on going so she could see him again.

Therefore, now that she was rested, Kanan'tú'lia rose to her feet and turned to the rock-side. Finding a suitable route, she kicked off the wall and grabbed hold, grunting on the strain it put on her muscles. As she climbed, she could feel the winds rippling through her clothes, making them whip against her flesh lightly and the further up she got, the stronger the wind became.

She was somewhat thankful for the wind, as it helped to cool the sweat covering her and thus kept her from overheating. Even still, she had become increasingly tired with every milestone she reached.

Finally though, Kanan'tú'lia reached an outcropping, pulling herself up onto solid ground once again. She crawled a little ways on her hands and knees, panting heavily as she collapsed onto her back. She lay there for what felt like hours as her screaming body slowly calmed, but her muscles soon began to cramp up and she hissed whenever she moved. Maybe it would be best to stay here for a while, gather herself up before she began moving again.

Before long, Kanan'tú'lia sat up, wincing as her back popped in various places as she moved. Removing her satchel, she grabbed her waterskin again and threw back a few drops of water down her throat. Putting the waterskin away, that was when Kanan'tú'lia began to look around. What she found was a wide open ridge with a pathway leading deeper into the mountain futher in, a number of foilage spread all along the rocks in random patterns which created a natural blanket across the surface of the rocks.

Looking behind her, that was when Kanan'tú'lia noticed that she could see the desert more clearly, which meant she was quite high up the mountain. In which case, that probably meant she had reached a high enough point to find the helioskrill. Before moving though, she continued to glance out over the horizon some more, truly fascinated to see the same view she always saw at the village, only on the opposite side.

She still wasn't sure if she could see the valley her village was hidden by, as the red sands made everything look the same from this distance, but the view was breathtaking none the less.

Finally having enough of watching the horizon, as the suns had begun their descent to the horizon, Kanan'tú'lia decided it best to get moving now. The last thing she wanted was to be ambushed by a helioskrill while it was dark, as she would never see it coming. So while she still had the light, she began to make her way further across the ridge, soon reaching the pathway through the rock. It wasn't long before the mountainside opened up into a large crevice, of which was dominated by crumbling ruins and statues spanning the entirity of the pass.

Knowing that she may have stumbled upon an ancient Sangheili city, Kanan'tú'lia's interest increased, knowing that these ruins may date back before the time of the Covenant. It was clear that not a single soul had been here in eras though, as nature had completely overtaken the ruins.

Even still, she carried on, pausing only to take in the sights, until she found her way to an enormous entryway, with satues of Sangheili shadowing either side of it. Looking through the massive doors, she noticed that while the place was slightly crumbled, it still seemed like a good enough location to bunker down. As the climb and the joureny here had thoroughly tired her out, Kanan'tú'lia thought it best to set up camp now and get as much rest as possible. Ancestors only knew how long it would take her to find a helioskrill, and she was too exhausted to attempt it now.

With that thought in mind, she entered the massive temple, climbing up some volumous stairs until she reached the top, where a grand looking balcony opened up to the outside, giving a perfect view of a courtyard below. That would be a good place to begin her search come morning, but for now the girl settled down in the nearest corner, removing her equipment as she did so.

Puling her satchel toward her, she dug around in it until she pulled out the final bit of colo meat. Hopefully there would be something other than the helioskrill up here for her to hunt down, as she wouldn't last long without a good meal in her belly. The last thing she wanted to do was to fight a feirce preadtor without having something to eat first.

As the suns descended futher down the horizon, Kanan'tú'lia's eyelids became heavy. Therefore, she huddled herself as far into the cornr as she could, wriggling around until she was comfortable. Spreading her mandibles out in a yawn, her eyelids drooped until she fell into a deep slumber, the worries of what could happen tomorrow being shoved to the back of her mind.


End file.
